By IANS
Ranchi : Salim and Raja, two young tigers, and a male rhinoceros are looking for eligible mates. Considering their needs, officials of the Birsa Munda Zoological Garden here have stepped up efforts to arrange tigresses and a female rhino for its bachelor residents.
At present, the zoo has three tigers and two tigresses. While tiger Arjun has tigresses Sundari and Saraswati for company, Salim and Raja have none.
Similarly, female elephant Lakhi has two male partners, but the male rhinoceros has no female partner.
"Efforts are on to bring in tigers and tigresses and female rhinos to the zoo. Formalities will be completed soon for bringing in one tiger and two tigresses from West Bengal," said an official.
He added: "Efforts are also on to bring female rhinos from Maharashtra." The new set of animals is likely to come in once the rainy season begins.
The zoo authorities are also concerned about the mating of lions.
The mating season for tigers begins with the coming in of monsoons. Considering the declining number of tigers in the country it is essential to find suitable mates for the big cats, zoo officials said.
Last year, Birsa zoo lost seven big cats including three tigresses to the babesiosis disease.
The zoo authorities are also concerned about the animals suffering from the scorching summer heat and have arranged for air coolers, pedestal fans, adequate water, glucose and other things to help the animals beat the heat.
Zoo officials are throwing wet jute bags on the bodies of the big cats to keep them cool besides monitoring their food and water intake.