Pilikula Biological Park welcomes striped hyenas, black swans, Indian gaurs

MANGALURU: Pilikula Biological Park at Moodushedde here welcomed visitors of the furry, winged and the sturdy kind by adding striped hyenas, Indian gaurs and black swans to its growing repertoire of animals. A Central Zoo Authority approved biological park, the authorities here under the animal exchange programme shipped these animals from Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens, Mysuru.
The park authorities received two striped hyenas, that are 18 months old, Indian gaurs and four black swans, said H Jayaprakash Bhandary, director of the park told TOI. While the striped hyenas – ‘Bharath’ and ‘Divya’ will be on display after four days since they have to get used to the local environment, black swans and the Indian gaurs are already in the aviary as the enclosure was kept ready for them, he said.
In return, park authorities here sent Royal Bengal Tigers – ‘Amar’, a male and ‘Nisha’, a female, four King Cobras and two Lesser Whistling Teals to Mysuru, Bhandary said. The Royal Bengal Tigers that are bred at Pilikula Biological Park are in great demand from similar facilities across India due to their lineage as no in breeding is allowed and they are well built, sturdy – making them cynosure of eyes, Bhandary said
With MRPL providing Rs 3.5 crore under its CSR funds to the biological park, a year-long moratorium has been put on animal adoption programme. MRPL has assured to continue financial support if their profits permit it, Bhandary said adding the park is now utilizing good will of people wanting to adopt animals for other infrastructure works such as Rs 15 lakh that a donor was willing to shell out to adopt animals here.
The CSR funds are being used to perk up health care facility for around 1,300 animal varieties including birds, mammals and reptiles, he said. “We have procured digital x-ray machine, incubators, blood analysers and food and meat storage facility using these funds,” he said, adding MRPL has also helped the park by adding to the green belt in the region that are growing plant species that are endemic to the Western Ghats.
The park is mulling to bring Rhea, swamp deer, Darter from Thiruvananthapuram; white tigers from Surat to be housed on its 150-acres facility. Around 90 per cent of the animals at the park are endemic to Western Ghats and the rest are of the exotic variety, he said. The park is also on lookout for potential hosts for its fast growing flock of Wild Dogs, an endangered species brought around a year ago from Vishakhapatnam, he said.