White tigress arrives at Pilikula

Mangaluru: The Pilikula Bilological Park here received a female white tigress named Kaveri, and a female ostrich, from Arignar Anna Zoological Park, Chennai, under the animal exchange programme, on Tuesday.
H J Bhandary, director, Pilikula Biological Park, said that Kaveri is the first white tigress in the zoo, and another male tiger is expected to join her soon. Kaveri and the ostrich will be in quarantine for at least a week for observation, till they get acclimatised to the local conditions. The public may be able to get a glimpse of them from next week. The zoo has about a thousand animals, reptiles and birds, and most of the species are breeding. Pilikula Biological Park is sending a male Bengal tiger, Sanjay, four dholes, and some snake species to Chennai. At present, Pilikula has 11 Bengal tigers, of which seven are male, and two male ostriches.
Bhandary said that efforts are on to procure Asiatic lions, Indian wolf, white buck, sloth bear, hog deer, nilgai and varieties of rare birds from Rajkot Zoo, Gujarat, Gorewada Zoo in Maharashtra and Nandankanan Zoo in Odisha. Surplus animals from Pilikula will be sent to other zoos, under the animal exchange programme. The concerned zoos have mutually agreed to the same, and are waiting for the consent from the Central Zoo Authority, New Delhi, for exchange.