Manas National Park & Tiger Reserve on October 2, 2023 announced that the population of swamp deer at the park has witnessed a rise. The swamp deer population has increased to 174 in 2023 from 121 in 2021, according to the National Park’s swamp deer estimation 2023.
https://x.com/manasnptr/status/1708850419836108986?s=20
Swamp Deer at Manas Tiger Reserve
Eastern Swamp Deer population recovery in Manas National Park , a translocation programme was developed by Assam Forest Department in collaboration with the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI ) on recommendation of the UNESCO World Heritage Site Committee.
As part of the programme, 36 individuals of Eastern Swamp Deer were translocated in two batches from Kaziranga National Park to Manas National Park in December 2014 and February 2017 respectively.
The swamp deer population at the national park has seen a drastic jump over the years. In the year 2017, there were 62 swamp deer, which over the course of 5 years increased in number. In 2018, it was 74 which increased to 83 in 2019.
In 2020, the number went up to 99 which increased to 121 in the year 2021. However, the national Park has seen the biggest rise between 2021 and 2023. It went up from 121 in 2021 to 174 in 2023. It is also to be noted that their was no survey in 2022 due to flooding in the park.
Manas’s Success Story
Manas National Park in Assam also saw a significant rise in its tiger population in 2021 which once had not even a single tiger in its possession. The Manas national park houses many other endangered species. It is home to animals like the Asian elephant, hog deer, hispid hare, wild buffalo, rhino, sambar deer, swamp deer, spotted deer, barking deer, Himalayan black bear, Himalayan serow, Goral, black panther, and binturong.
There are 48 tigers, 475 different species of birds, 250 species of butterflies and 60 and more mammal species in the Tiger Reserve, according to the official website of the Reserve. Similar to the reintroduction of swamp deer, Manas Tiger Reserve has been involved in the reintroduction of pygmy hogs, and Asiatic buffalo.
Twelve captive-bred pygmy hogs were released in Manas National Park of Assam by the Pygmy Hog Conservation Programme (PHCP) on June 22 and 26, 2021, for the second time. They were first reintroduced in Manas in 2020. Similarly, a pair of wild Asiatic buffalo ( one male and a female ) has been translocated from Manas TR to Chattisgarh, during the lockdown period of Covid – 19 pandemic in 2021.
https://x.com/manasnptr/status/1706703201175752798?s=20
The park officially opened for the 2023-24 ecotourism season with effect from 1st October 2023.