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Asiatic Lion - Data, Pictures & Videos
Asiatic Lion - Data, Pictures & Videos
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Asiatic Lion - Data, Pictures & Videos
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  *This image is copyright of its original author jigar4gir - The Royal walk in the golden light.with @safarilifegir  *This image is copyright of its original author jaymin_ppatel - “ROAD BLOCK” 
I already posted this reply in another thread, but I'll post it here too and maybe someone in the know can answer it. T
here is something I don't understand about the way the Indian government is approaching Asiatic lion reintroduction. There are many Asiatic lions living in zoos in India, why not breed some of them in a dedicated breeding program and then release the progeny in the wild in, for example, Madhya Pradesh, or elsewhere. Couldn't that bypass the Gujarat government altogether? Given the relatively high reproductive rate of lions, they could have established a decent wild population outside of Gujarat by now if they had been breeding captive ones for reintroduction. If it's impossible to use lions in Indian zoos then the Indian government could request gametes from lions held in Europe or elsewhere. Once the population is large enough, they could trade with Iran - some of the lions for Asiatic cheetahs. I mean, even Iran, a whole other country and apparently the reciprocal antagonist of India in this process, has managed to get a hold of an Asiatic lion that they are going to try to breed, so can the Indian government do so as well?  (10-12-2020, 10:59 AM)KRA123 Wrote: I already posted this reply in another thread, but I'll post it her too and maybe someone in the know can answer it. There is something I don't understand about the way the Indian government is approaching Asiatic lion reintroduction. There are many Asiatic lions living in zoos in India, why not breed some of them in a dedicated breeding program and then release the progeny in the wild in, for example, Madhya Pradesh, or elsewhere. Couldn't that bypass the Gujarat government altogether? Given the relatively high reproductive rate of lions, they could have established a decent wild population outside of Gujarat by now if they had been breeding captive ones for reintroduction. If it's impossible to use lions in Indian zoos then the Indian government could request gametes from lions held in Europe or elsewhere. Once the population is large enough, they could trade with Iran - some of the lions for Asiatic cheetahs. I mean, even Iran, a whole other country and apparently the reciprocal antagonist of India in this process, has managed to get a hold of an Asiatic lion that they are going to try to breed, so can the Indian government do so as well? Red. Tapes. They might have to go for something like that ultimately. There are amongst 500 specimens worldwide, giving a large pool to choose from!.. MP also has experience in rewilding semi-wild raised cubs (with about 95% success rate). Not only that the slight inbreeding amongst the captive population is actually helpful in this case... It means the individuals carrying undesirable recessive genes can be easily identified & avoided. PS: Make paragraphs. 
@KRA123, exactly what @Rishi said. Plus, there isn’t actually a viable habitat where lions could be reintroduced. Kuno has at least 6 tigers and has a corridor to Ranthambore. They won’t reintroduce lions even if they detect a slight presence of tigers in the area.
As for the Iran and Asiatic Cheetah, that is the pipe dream that won’t happen any time soon even if politics is kept out of it. Iran should be focused on increasing Asiatic cheetah numbers (which are less than 60) first to a sustainable level before thinking about any of this. That is going to take decades. And, I agree with you on the introduction of African Cheetah into India. It is pig-headedness of the authorities to fulfil some sort of dream instead of accepting reality which is driving this rather than conservation. Not to mention, it might fail spectacularly (especially if they introduce them in areas with other big cats) and the global cheetah numbers are already low. (10-12-2020, 11:42 AM)Ashutosh Wrote: Plus, there isn’t actually a viable habitat where lions could be reintroduced. Kuno has at least 6 tigers and has a corridor to Ranthambore. They won’t reintroduce lions even if they detect a slight presence of tigers in the area. What?!.. Ofcourse there is. Thousands of square kilometres. 3000 km² Banni grassland & much of 5000km² Little Kutchh are in Gujarat alone. Yes, Kuno is actually a bad spot IMO, sitting right in the middle of a major potential tiger corridor that could connect the inbred northwestern population to central Indian (more on that in the Asiatic Lion reintroduction thread).
Little Runn of Kutch doesn’t have a prey base to support lions or cheetahs not to mention saline water which is not conducive for either species. There is a reason why only Great Indian Ass and a very specific breed of Dromedary camel inhabit these areas.
Even in medieval times, lions never occupied this area as the salt industry has thrived and has been active since IVC (Dholavira). I am not aware of the present condition of Banni grasslands and what kind of prey base it holds to sustain lions. (10-12-2020, 11:42 AM)Ashutosh Wrote: @KRA123, exactly what @Rishi said. Plus, there isn’t actually a viable habitat where lions could be reintroduced. Kuno has at least 6 tigers and has a corridor to Ranthambore. They won’t reintroduce lions even if they detect a slight presence of tigers in the area. I agree Kuno doesn't really seem like the best place to me, but I know they have been considering it so I mentioned MP. I was thinking of places in the grasslands of northwestern India. Ironically, most of these places are also in Gujarat, raising the additional question of should the Gujarat government have put plans in place to move some Gir lions to a grassland area. Also, introducing lions/cheetahs should definitely be among the last steps taken when rewilding an area; in fact, if the goal is to have both species in an area then cheetahs should probably be introduced first since lions competitively kill them. Only after the populations of prey species as well as mesopredators like cheetah and wolves had increased would it be safe to reintroduce the lions. Nevertheless, if the captive lion population is bred with the intent of eventual reintroduction, then at some point when there are enough of them it probably is best to attempt a trade with Iran. If the Asiatic cheetah is to have a future then I suspect that India must be involved. The Iranian populations remind my of those populations of Javan rhinos which lived in Indochina until recently, in that the conservation projects they are under now might amount to slow, drawn out extinction because the areas where they are being conserved can't sustain a healthy population in the first place, at least not with the present level of anthropogenic pressure. Actually I think it might not possible to have a healthy wild lion population in modern Iran (though I don't know enough to say confidently), but as long as the Iranian government wants lions then there is leverage which India can use to obtain some cheetahs. And yes, the cheetah population in Iran also should be increased in the mean time; hopefully that can happen due to the recent moves that they have made over there.   (10-13-2020, 01:10 AM)Lycaon Wrote: @KRA123 @Lycaon are they there in a zoo, or are they part of an active re-introduction project? If the latter, are we aware of the status of that project?  *This image is copyright of its original author Jalpan Rupapara - LION KILL-4 THIS IS MORNING PHOTOGRAPH OF KILL OF A DOMESTIC COW..WHICH UNFORTUNATELY ENTERED IN FOREST AREA WHILE GRAZING..IT IS USUALLY SEEN THAT IN PERIPHERAL AREAS OF GIR ,DOMESTIC ANIMALS ENTERED THE FOREST AREA WHILE GRAZING..AND LIONS TAKE THEIR BENIFIT AS CAN B SEEN FROM THIS INCIDENT. V SAW THE KILL IN EARLY MORNING..WHEN I TOOK THIS PICTURE, COW WAS ALIVE..!!! 2008 (10-13-2020, 01:10 AM)Lycaon Wrote: @KRA123 I know, but one pair isn't really enough for a targeted breeding program, especially if the target is supposed to be reintroduction. As of right now, it is still possible. It may not be in the future. You're right about them not not necessarily wanting to go through India, but I have my doubts about how easily they can procure more lions from other sources.  |
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