Cheetahs can re-establish range in India: Laurie Marker

Laurie Marker, executive director of Cheetah Conservation Fund, who is coordinating the translocation of big cats from Namibia, says African Cheetahs will be able to adapt in Kuno easily due to similarity in the habitat of the wild animals in the two countries.

India awaits the introduction of the first batch of eight African Cheetahs from Namibia in Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park on Saturday. Laurie Marker, executive director of Cheetah Conservation Fund, who is coordinating the translocation of big cats from Namibia, says African Cheetahs will be able to adapt in Kuno easily due to similarity in the habitat of the wild animals in the two countries. In an interview with Jayashree Nandi, Marker, who will travel with the eight cheetahs to India, however, says to establish their sustainable population in the long run, their habitat area will have to be made a lot larger. Edited excerpts:

Laurie Marker, executive director of Cheetah Conservation Fund, is coordinating the translocation of cheetahs from Namibia to India. (Cheetah Conservation Fund)

The cheetah translocation project is a historic moment for India, which saw the big cats getting extinct in the late 1940s. What are your expectations as a cheetah expert from it?

The cheetah lost most of its habitat and range in the last 50 to 100 years. This will be an opportunity to re-establish a part of what used to be its historical range. It is a wonderful opportunity.

Kuno is not entirely a grassland ecosystem and it also has some woodlands. Do you think African Cheetahs will adapt easily in Indian habitat?

The habitat in Kuno is very similar to Namibia or South Africa. The prey is different but the right size, so there are no concerns with adaptability. The Kuno habitat looks good.

The size of Kuno National Park is only 748 square kilometre. How do you think the big cats will be able to establish themselves in India with a healthy population?

The Indian government is working on that. They have identified potential alternative sites in and around other national parks. A metapopulation needs to be established for which some cheetahs need to be moved back and forth mainly for genetic diversity purposes. Once the metapopulation is established, they can have a large range within the country.

We do not have fenced reserves here. Do you see man-animal conflict as a potential risk to cheetahs in India?

Namibia also has an open system. There are people and farms here also. Cheetahs normally do not get into conflict with humans. They choose flight over fight. As long as they find the right prey, they should be happy.

Today, only 7,500 cheetahs remain in the wild while during one of your talks in 2014 you mentioned there were 10,000 cheetahs. How is climate change threatening the species?

Climate change is affecting every habitat. Cheetahs live in some of the most arid regions of the world. These regions are getting hotter and drier due to climate change, affecting the antelope population that the cheetahs hunt. The impact of global warming on arid regions, particularly temperature variation, is concerning.

A few years ago there were plans by the Indian government to introduce lions from Gujarat in Kuno. Now that has been put on hold, but in future do you see cheetahs coexisting with lions and other cats.

Cheetahs are familiar with other big cats like the lion. We do not have the tiger here [in Namibia], but when there are a variety of species, conflict cannot be ruled out. But, they can coexist.

You have worked with Indian authorities over the past 12 years. What has been your experience like on the cheetah translocation project?

I worked as a consultant on the project. The governments did all the hard work. My work involved looking at the habitat and advising the government. We have hosted several groups from India to understand the cheetah and its habitat. I felt the government is committed to this cause. I have travelled to Kuno a couple of times. I was there two months ago to see the habitat.