Tigress released into Similipal enclosure

Baripada : A tigress, brought from Maharashtra, was safely released into an enclosure in the core area of Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Mayurbhanj district on Monday. The tigress was brought from Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Maharashtra under a translocation project to curb in-breeding and improve the gene pool of tigers inside the reserve, which is the only wild habitat for melanistic Royal Bengal tigers

The two-and-a-half-year-old tigress was captured in TATR on Saturday morning and brought to Similipal on Sunday afternoon. The forest officials said the enclosure has been created in the core area within the Similipal South division where the wild animal will be kept under observation for at least one to two weeks before its release into the wild.

The translocation of the tigress was done with the permission of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). This was Odisha's second attempt to translocate tigers.