Trap cameras have recently captured pictures of a juvenile Indian wolf (Canis lupus pallipes) in the forests of West Burdwan.
Wildlife enthusiasts are agog because rarely has such a young wolf been documented by trap cameras in south Bengal. The juvenile is believed to be one of the pups clicked in the wild by a researcher in March this year.
Around 15 trap cameras have been set up in West Burdwan to track wolves. The locations include forest pockets like Garjangal, Bijra and Kantaberia.
In March this year, Mukherjee had clicked pictures of two pups. The juvenile captured by the trap cameras in October is believed to be one of the pups.
“Now, it seems around seven to eight months old. There is no trace of the second pup in the pictures taken by the trap cameras. But even a 50 per cent survival rate is encouraging,” said Arkajyoti Mukherjee, a researcher at IIT Kharagpur and the principal investigator in the study.
“These animals live in a human-dominated landscape. Rising human interference, mining activities and shrinking prey base pose serious challenges,” he added.
A six-month survey in 2023 in a single forest, Madhaiganj, around 25km from Durgapur, had pointed to a pack of wolves.
This year, more cameras have been placed covering a larger area. The survey aims to assess the relative abundance of the predators and identify the conflict hotspots in the district.
“From the images we have studied so far, we estimate the presence of three packs and a combined population of around 15 wolves. This is based on morphological features,” said Sagar Adhurya, a member of the research team.
“The alpha female of one pack is called langda (lame) because a portion of her hind paw is missing. The pup that has grown to be a juvenile is her baby,” he said.
Another adult male in the same pack has a cut mark on the outer pinna of its right ear.
Wolves are known to maintain large territories. The study will help shed light on the corridors used by the wolves to go to or come from other districts. The animals prey on grass birds, Indian hares and rodents but also kill goats out for grazing and lift poultry from the nearby villages, stoking the risk of conflict.
Protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, Indian wolves or Indian grey wolves are found across peninsular India in scrub forests, grasslands and arid areas.
The lack of surveys means their exact numbers are unknown. A forest official said they favoured semi-arid regions and ravine-like places, where it is easier to hide their pups.
The West Burdwan project is part of WWF-India’s flagship Conservation Catalyst Programme (CCP), which “supports grassroot conservationists and organisations to conserve wildlife and habitat, and helps awardees become more effective, structured and empowered”.
The cameras were placed in phases from June and will be in place till at least January.
The locations were selected on the basis of inputs by the forest department.
An initial report will be submitted to the WWF in January and a detailed report in October.
Apart from Mukherjee and Adhurya, others on the survey team are Arnish Bose and Manish Kumar Chattopadhyay. They are part of an NGO Wildlife Information and Nature Guide Society (WINGS).
“The trap camera images of the juvenile are rare and very encouraging. This is an industrial belt. In this challenging terrain, the survival of the young ones is a welcome sign. The wolf is the apex predator here. A thriving wolf population indicates a healthy ecosystem,” said Anupam Khan, the divisional forest officer of Durgapur.
“The survey will also help us assess the inter-district movement of wolves, their relation with humans and the carrying capacity of the habitat,” he added.