The Hindu : Front Page : A rare reunion in a wildlife sanctuary

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jun 18, 2007
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A rare reunion in a wildlife sanctuary

Satyasundar Barik

BHUBANESWAR: In a rare incident, a mother elephant came with its herd to rescue its calf from outside the Chandaka Wildlife Sanctuary, on the outskirts of the capital city, on Saturday.

The ordeal of one-year-old Kalinga came to an end when she was herded into her natural habitat after about 40 days under the care of the forest department. A few days ago, the calf lost its chance to return to the wild when it failed to respond to a female elephant's attempts.

The calf got separated from its original herd in early May. Since then, forest department officials kept the calf on the periphery of the sanctuary, hoping that it would eventually be taken back by the elephants.

On Saturday, the calf mingled with a four-member herd comprising one tusker and three elephants. The herd came to drink water near the Bharatpur watchtower, where Kalinga was strolling. On Sunday, forest officials heaved a sigh of relief when the calf was sighted with its mother.

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