Kozhikode: Though winter has only begun, the forest officials here have made preparations for the animal migration from other drought-prone forest regions which has already commenced.
With 76 per cent monsoon deficiency in Wayanad, the entire Nilgiri biosphere scattered across the three states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala is in the grip of an early summer. Forest officers in the region believe that if the rains fail, the wildlife habitats would face a catastrophe.
Officials across ranges were alerted to look out for wildfires in the Wayanad wildlife sanctuary with an area of 344 sqkm which boasts of 211 waterfalls and more than 50 check dams. To check the early migration, the Tamil Nadu forest department started filling the artificial ponds and water turfs in the jungle.
Kurichiad assistant wildlife warden Ajit K. Raman told this newspaper that such an early threat of water scarcity and summer fires was for the first time in a decade.
“We usually start fire border and fire watching activities by the mid of February or in early March. But this time if there is no rain the summer fires would start early,” he added.
“The early migration would further intensify the already aggravated human-animal conflict in the region,” he felt.
The animal migration which used to begin in March from the drought-prone regions of Muthumalai wildlife sanctuary in Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, and Bandipur wildlife sanctuary in Karnataka has started to the comparatively water rich zones of Wayanad.
Muthumalai range officer G. Gnanadoss told this newspaper that to check the early migration, the forest department had been supplying water to artificial concrete ponds inside the jungle at various places.
“Though there are a few areas where water is available now, the pace with which waterholes are drying up is alarming,” he added.
