The Chitwan National Park is conducting a census of gaurs, locally known as Gauri Gai, one of the protected animals in the country from Monday as part of the ongoing National Wildlife Week that kicked off on the first day of Nepali New Year.
The Chitwan National Park is conducting a census of gaurs, locally known as Gauri Gai, one of the protected animals in the country from Monday as part of the ongoing National Wildlife Week that kicked off on the first day of Nepali New Year.
The park authority is using 24 elephants and mobilising 130 staff, including volunteers, to carry out the count being conducted for the first time since 2007. It has allocated Rs400,000 to carry out the three-day count.
According to the 2007 census , there were 312 gaurs, scientifically known as (Bos gaurus) inside the CNP and 21 in the adjoining Parsa Widlife Reserve (PWR).
“There have been frequent sightings of gaurs by patrolling teams inside the park that indicates their numbers might be increasing inside CNP,” said Narendra Aryal, assistant conservation officer at the CNP.
Habitat degradation and killing by tigers are key threats to gaurs in Nepal, while these animals are poached for meat and trophies in other parts of the world where they are found, including in Laos, Vietnam and Thailand.
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