African Swine Fever (ASF) has been confirmed in wild boar populations in the Sigur plateau, with Forest Department officials concerned about its spread, after around 15 animals were found dead in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) recently.
P. Ramesh Kumar, Field Director of the Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka, which is contiguous to the MTR, confirmed to The Hindu that samples from dead boars found in the Bandipur Reservce, which had been sent to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) were positive for ASF, a viral disease.Dr. Kumar said wild boars had been found dead within the reserve over the last few weeks, but added that the situation was being closely monitored.
The Bandipur tiger reserve in Karnataka and the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in the Nilgiris are located in the Sigur plateau, with wildlife moving freely between the two reserves.
In the Nilgiris, the deaths of wild boar in the Nilgiris forest division have also been noticed for a few weeks, primarily around Manjoor in the Kundah Forest Range. Field Director of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR), D. Venkatesh, said that around 15 wild boar had died in the tiger reserve recently. “We have formed teams to search for carcasses of any wild boar to destroy them to control the spread of the disease,” he said.
Mr. Venkatesh added that the Theppakadu elephant camp has been cordoned off and that wild boar are being chased away from the area by teams deployed by the Forest Department. Samples from the wild boar that have died in MTR have been sent to IVRI and to the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS) to confirm whether these animals too, have died from ASF, officials stated.
Officials also said ASF is not known to spread to humans or to other wildlife but is highly contagious to domestic and wild pigs. There are concerns among conservationists that ASF could decimate the wild boar population in the Sigur plateau and in the Nilgiris forest division. “Wild boar comprise an important prey base for carnivores such as tigers, leopards and Asiatic wild dogs. The Forest Department, as well as the government needs to ensure that the outbreak is contained,” said N. Mohanraj, a Nilgiris-based conservationist.
District Forest Officer (Nilgiris division), S. Gowtham, said that the Forest Department had received information about the reported deaths of wild boar in MTR, and stated that only a single wild boar death had been reported in the Nilgiris forest division the last week. “All forest rangers have been told to report any deaths, and protocols to quickly dispose of the carcasses appropriately, will be in place,” said Mr. Gowtham when contacted by The Hindu.
