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Two gaur calves born in Mysore zoo, takes number of gaurs to 23

Special Correspondent

There are nine males, 12 females and two calves

MYSORE: The zoo authorities here have reason to smile. Two pairs of gaurs, Jasmine and Anil and Kalpana and Lara have produced healthy offspring.

The gaurs, or Indian bison, have successfully bred in captivity at Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens. The Mysore zoo has set a record of sorts for successful breeding of gaurs in captivity.

Jasmine delivered a calf on February 17, and the second calf was born to Kalpana on Monday. With this, the number of gaurs in the zoo has gone up to 23: nine males, 12 females and two calves. The calves and their mothers are doing well, say zoo veterinarians.

According to zoo Executive Director Manoj Kumar, gaurs breed throughout the year, though there is a peak between December and June. The gestation period is 280 days, and generally one calf is born though there are a few rare occasions when a gaur has given birth to two calves.

All the gaurs in the Mysore zoo have stud book numbers allotted to them by the Stud Bookkeepers in Germany. Hence, these animals have a high exchange value. Classified as highly endangered, gaurs are listed in Schedule 1 of the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972.

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