In a major animal exchange programme with zoo outside of Maharashtra, the Balasaheb Thackeray Gorewada International Zoological Park, Gorewada, on Monday received a number of herbivores and birds, including some endangered animals from Nawab Wajid Ali Shah Zoological Garden, Lucknow. Under the exchange programme, Gorewada Zoo received 6 hog deers, including 2 males, which is an endangered species and are found in Northern parts of India and also in Pakistan. Along with this, the zoo got a pair of blue-yellow macaws, which are commonly found in South America and are rare in India. Seven number of Swamp deer (Barasingha), including 2 males, four painted storks and two saras cranes also arrived at the zoo. In exchange, Gorewada Zoo sent a pair of sloth bears to Lucknow Zoo.

 

After sending two sloth bears, the Gorewada Zoo has four sloth bears. Along with this, the zoo has two tigers, five leopards, 50 plus herbivores including blackbuck, albino blackbuck, sambar, barking deer, nilgai, chital and Sangai deer. The existing herbivores in the zoo came from Delhi Zoo in 2021 in the first ever animal exchange programme.

The exchange programme took place after getting the green signal from the technical committee of the Central Zoo Authority (CZA). “All the herbivores and the birds have already been released in the enclosure but it is yet to start for the tourists as the animals are not yet familiar with tourists. Their acclimatisation will take few more days,” Shatnik Bhagwat, Director, Gorewada Zoo told ‘The Hitavada’.