First India-born Cheetah, Mukhi, Gives Birth To 5 Cubs
On May 23, 2023, Mukhi lost all three of her siblings in a single day due to extreme heat conditions prevailing in the Kuno National Park then. She herself was extremely weak and exhausted, and had to be picked up for an emergency health checkup.
Bhopal: In a ‘historic breakthrough’ for India’s cheetah reintroduction initiative, Mukhi- the first India-born female cheetah-has given birth to five cubs in the Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district.
Breaking the news in his X post on Thursday, Union forest and environment minister Bhupendra Yadav described it a ‘historic milestone.
“In a delightful breakthrough for India’s cheetah reintroduction initiative, Mukhi- the first India-born female cheetah, aged 33 months- has given birth to five cubs. This is the first time in recent history that an India-born cheetah has reproduced, making it a landmark achievement for Project Cheetah”, Mr. Yadav said in his X post.
He noted that “successful reproduction by an India-born cheetah is a strong indicator of the species’ adaptation, health, and long-term prospects in Indian habitats”.
He said this significant development reinforces optimism about establishing a self-sustaining and genetically diverse cheetah population in India, further advancing India’s conservation goals.
Field director of Kuno National Park, Uttam Kumar Sharma, said the mother and her cubs are doing fine.
“Mukhi is destiny’s child since she weathered various trials and tribulations throughout her life to hold many firsts”, a senior forest officer of Kuno National Park said.
She is the first cheetah cub born in India since the cheetah was declared officially extinct in 1952. She is the only cub among the first litter of four cubs of female cheetah Jwala, to survive. She delivered her first litter of five ‘true Indian cubs’ since her newborns were fathered by female cheetah Aasha’s offspring, born in Kuno National Park.
Mukhi’s father, Saurya, is dead.
“Mukhi has faced every challenge an orphaned newborn could possibly face. She is a symbol of courage and hope for all of us here- a true fighter”, Mr. Sharma who led the success story of the cheetah project in the field, told this newspaper.
On May 23, 2023, Mukhi lost all three of her siblings in a single day due to extreme heat conditions prevailing in the Kuno National Park then. She herself was extremely weak and exhausted, and had to be picked up for an emergency health checkup.
When reunification with her mother, Jwala, was attempted after she recovered, she was rejected by her mother.
“From that moment on, she was raised by the Kuno National Park management team with utmost care, always ensuring that she did not develop human imprinting. Her ordeals did not stop there. She had suffered injuries and had to undergo a long course of treatment”, Mr. Sharma recounted.
She learned hunting on her own since her mother rejected her at her infancy and she is a mother now, he added.
Eight cheetahs from Namibia and 12 others from South Africa were brought to Kuno under the cheetah reintroduction project.
Kuno now has a cheetah population of 29 including the five newborns of Mukhi whereas three cheetahs have been shifted to Gandhi Sagar wildlife sanctuary in Mandsaur district in MP from Kuno a few weeks ago.
