Experts from the Wildlife Institute of India (WII-Dehradun) and the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department are all set to begin the country’s maiden exercise of collaring 10 fishing cats (Prionailurus viverrinus) in the Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary in the Godavari estuary to study the species’ ecology, home range, behaviour in different seasons, feeding habits, threats, movements and use of space.
By 2018, the population of the fishing cat in the sanctuary was 115.
The three-year project is expected to be grounded in a few weeks in the sanctuary’s 235.7-sq. km mangrove ecosystem, capturing the fishing cats and collaring them with light weight equipment containing the Geographical Information System.
C. Selvam, DFO, Rajamahendravaram, Wildlife Management Division, told The Hindu that the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change had permitted the capture and collaring of the fishing cats. WII experts would collar the fishing cats before letting the animals into their natural habitat.
Yanam-based Vedanta Limited (Cairn Oil and Gas Division) has come forward to provide ₹74 lakh for the project and ₹45 lakh had been released.
