Andhra Pradesh - Visakhapatnam   

Royal Bengal tiger implanted with microchip

Photo: K.R. Deepak

Under watch: The Royal Bengal tiger at the Indira Gandhi Zoological Park in Visakhapatnam in which a microchip is implanted on Monday. —

VISAKHAPATNAM: With an aim to regularise and monitor endangered species of animals, zoo authorities have taken up a project for the micro-chipping of the animals. A team of veterinarians implanted the first microchip, a bio-compatible material, on a female Royal Bengal tiger at the Indira Gandhi Zoological Park recently.

This project of micro-chipping will also help in keeping a track of the animal. “It’s difficult to track down the history of the animal, especially when it is send to other zoos as part of animal exchange programmes. Micro-chipping serves a mark of identification,” zoo curator Rahul Pandey told The Hindu.

After the tigers, micro-chipping will be done on lions, rhinos, elephants and other endangered species. The microchip, the size of a diameter of a rice grain, is made of an inert material, which is bio-compatible and will not have any effect on the health of the animal. It will bear a 10-digit number.

A proforma for each animal would also be prepared. This would contain information such as the animal’s age, sex, name, measurement, identification marks and others.

The hypodermic microchip is implanted in the skin of the animal. The device will have a unique number that would serve as its identification number.

The microchip reader will give the number and relevant details of the animal once it is brought near the chip. Several countries require a microchip when importing an animal, as a proof that the animal and the vaccination record belong together.

The zoo authorities are also gearing up to bring in new species of animals shortly, curator Pandey informed.

While the nation’s oldest lion in captivity, Arjun, will be completing 25 years in October, the zoo is planning to procure pure breed of Asiatic lions from the Hyderabad zoo.

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