IMPHAL, Dec 8 - An enclosure of Sangai (brow-antlered deer), the State animal of Manipur, was inaugurated at Manipur Zoological Garden located at Eroishemba on the outskirts of Imphal town on Saturday.
The enclosure has a total area of 4,800 square metre with marshy vegetation similar to the natural habitat of Sangai deer.
The enclosure has a large paddock (animal display area) to meet the animal�s biological requirements, including provision for night shelter, kraal, and keeper gallery.
The side facing the visitor�s path has a moat to offer visitors a barless view of the animals.
Two pairs of Sangai were successfully translocated from Sangai Conservation Centre at Langol to the zoological garden for public display with technical assistance from Wildlife Institute of India (WII) and the Central government.
Before the translocation process was initiated, behavioural observation of the animals was done on a regular basis from March to October by the experts from WII and Manipur Zoological Garden.
The translocation was carried out on October 17 and 18. The translocated animals at the zoological garden were kept under continuous monitoring for three weeks. All the translocated Sangai deer were ear-tagged for research purposes.
On November 6, the newly translocated adult female gave birth to a fawn which is another success story of the zoological garden. The fawn is said to healthy and responding well.
Manipur Forest and Environment Minister Thounaojam Shyamkumar and senior forest officials, including Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Wildlife, DJN Anand and Director of Manipur Zoological Garden Gaithaolu Thaimei, were present during the inauguration.
