Madhya Pradesh: In a blow to India's efforts to reintroduce the cheetah into its natural habitat, one of the 12 cheetahs that were brought from South Africa to Kuno National Park in Madhya Pradesh has died from an unknown illness. The incident occurred on Sunday evening when Cheetah Uday, a six-year-old male captured from the Waterberg region of South Africa, passed away. The cheetahs were airlifted on February 18 as part of the Cheetah Metapopulation Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of the endangered species. Although the project had confirmed the cheetahs' good health, experts have voiced concerns about their prolonged captivity, with some cheetahs reportedly experiencing chronic stress and losing fitness. On Monday, a team of wildlife experts found Uday in a state of torpor during their daily monitoring routine, with his head drooping low in exhaustion. The cause of Uday's death is currently unknown, and further investigations are underway.
