The Hindu : National : Darjeeling park to breed two more species

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Friday, Sep 07, 2007
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Darjeeling park to breed two more species

KOLKATA: The Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park in Darjeeling is set to have breeding programmes for the highest number of endangered species among the various “coordinating” zoos in the country.

While it has been selected as a breeding centre for two more species besides the three already in existence, it has also been considered a “participating zoo” for another five highly endangered species from the east Himalayan region, B.K. Gupta, Scientific Officer, Central Zoo Authority (CZA), told The Hindu from New Delhi on Thursday.

Successful programmes

The breeding-in-captivity programmes for the snow leopard, the red panda and the Tibetan wolf have yielded successful results. It is the only zoological park in the country from where red pandas, bred in captivity, have been released into the wild, a senior official of the zoological park added from Darjeeling.

Added to these species would be the Himalayan salamander and the satyrtragoban, an endangered pheasant. “It has also been selected as a participating zoo for the Himalayan tar goat, the blue sheep, the blood pheasant, the Bhutan grey peacock pheasant and the Himalayan Monal,” Mr. Gupta added.

Space constraint

As space was a major constraint for setting up the new centres in the 67-acre zoo, the authorities were planning satellite zoos at Lebong, near Darjeeling, and in Kurseong’s Dow Hill area, the zoological park official said.

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