SUNDAY, MAY 19, 2024
PANJIM, APRIL 7
As the state’s forest department is all set to have animal census in Goa’s wild from April 21, the unique camera tap method would be adopted to conduct this exercise.
“For the first time, the department will be conducting camera tap census in the state. The camera will take pictures of the sighted animal thus making it easier for the officials. This will also help in avoiding duplication in count,” Chief Conservator of Forest Dr Shashi Kumar said.
The census, which would assess animals and their habitat including study of whether there is proper fodder available for herbivorous animals, is one of the biggest kinds of census ever conducted by the forest department.
“Wildlife census is important to establish the trend based on which the forest management is chalked out,” Kumar added.
He informed that a team of Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun will be visiting Goa next week to train officials and volunteers involved in the census.
The three-day long training will be conducted both in North and South Goa beginning from April 13.
The census will cover all five wildlife sanctuaries as well as reserve forest areas of the state.
A week long census will also help in predicting the presence of tigers in the state. It may be recalled that the state had recently witnessed killing of a tiger and existence of a tigress in Mhadei wildlife sanctuary basin, giving a way for environmentalists to call it a tiger habitat.
The state Forest Department had earlier conducted such census during 2002 and in 2006.
