Kolkata: Buoyed by the rise in population of one-horned rhinoceros in Bengal, the state’s Forest department is now scouting for new habitats to house the herbivores, a senior official said on Monday.
As per the latest census conducted in Jaldapara, Gorumara National Parks, Chapramari wildlife sanctuary and parts of Jalpaiguri reserve forests in March, the rhino population has gone up to 392 from 229 in 2013, he said.
The survey covered an area of 396 sq km.
Chief Wildlife Warden (CWW) Debal Ray told a news agency that “we are on the lookout for other habitats for rhinos in North Bengal where they can move freely and in a conducive environment.” Asked about places that can be earmarked as future habitats for rhinos, he said “the project gets implemented with the Centre’s nod, so we cannot specify the place. But, it will be located within the same region”.
Over 600 Forest department employees along with members of NGOs and civil society groups took part in the enumeration exercise, the official said.
The Jaldapara National Park is the second largest habitat of one–horned rhinos after the Kaziranga National Park in Assam, he said. While the rhino population in Gorumara National Park was estimated at an average of 61 (between 58 and 63), in Jaldapara National Park, the average was 331 (between 327 and 334), the official said.
The department typically pegs the total count of wild animals like rhinos on an average.