Puma pair added to zoo

Published April 29, 2008

LAHORE, April 28: Two young pumas have been added to the Lahore Zoo after over two decades.

The big cats from North America were transported from Karachi to the zoo on Sunday night and put in a cage for public viewing the following morning. The zoo lastly had pumas in 1986.

The zoo management committee had, two months ago, given approval for addition of a number of new animals under an exchange programme. The pumas have been brought here in exchange for a female leopard. A Karachi-based private animal supplier company called Jungle Kingdom has been instrumental in the exchange.

Lahore Zoo Director Yousaf Pal told Dawn that through the animal exchange programme millions of rupees had been saved. “The leopard will be handed over to the Karachi company only if the pumas got a clean health bill,” added Pal. He said the market price of pumas was Rs1.8 million, but zoo did not pay a penny since these animals had been added to the zoo under the exchange programme.

Wildlife experts maintain that putting the pumas on public view without carrying out their medical tests may result in outbreak of diseases here as the region of their origin had been prone to dangerous animal diseases.

Pal maintained that quarantine of the pumas had already been done by the company which had imported them. However, medical tests would be carried out here by the Veterinary Research Institute and the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences.

This specie has different names like panther, mountain lion, catamouth or cougar, depending on the region it belongs. It has the widest distribution, with a range extending from southeastern Alaska to southern Argentina and Chile. Pumas live in a variety of habitats, including desert scrub, chaparral, swamps and forests, but they avoid agricultural areas.

Puma has a powerful body with long hind legs to jump over 40 feet and a long tail which is 50-80cm long. It is the second largest cat in the Americas and is a champion jumper among the cats.

BABOONS: Zoo has also brought a trio of baboons under the exchange programme. In exchange, it will give two pairs of spotted deer and two black bucks. The zoo director said medical tests of baboons had been conducted. He said the market price of the baboon trio was over Rs1.2 million, but the zoo, in this case too, did not pay any money. He said the last baboon at zoo died four months ago after completing his natural life cycle of around 20 years.

Opinion

Editorial

Kurram ceasefire
Updated 26 Nov, 2024

Kurram ceasefire

DESPITE efforts by the KP government to bring about a ceasefire in Kurram tribal district, the bloodletting has...
Hollow victory
26 Nov, 2024

Hollow victory

THE conclusion of COP29 in Baku has left developing nations — struggling with the mounting costs of climate...
Infrastructure schemes
26 Nov, 2024

Infrastructure schemes

THE government’s decision to finance priority PSDP schemes on a three-year rolling basis is a significant step...
Anti-women state
Updated 25 Nov, 2024

Anti-women state

GLOBALLY, women are tormented by the worst tools of exploitation: rape, sexual abuse, GBV, IPV, and more are among...
IT sector concerns
25 Nov, 2024

IT sector concerns

PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s ambitious plan to increase Pakistan’s IT exports from $3.2bn to $25bn in the ...
Israel’s war crimes
25 Nov, 2024

Israel’s war crimes

WHILE some powerful states are shielding Israel from censure, the court of global opinion is quite clear: there is...