Cheetah Nabha Dies at Kuno a Week After Suffering Severe Injuries

An eight-year-old cheetah named Nabha, brought to Kuno National Park from Namibia, has died a week after suffering severe injuries. According to Cheetah Project Field Director Uttam Sharma, Nabha likely sustained the injuries during a hunting attempt inside her soft release enclosure. She had fractures in both the ulna and fibula on her left side, along with other wounds. 

After battling severe injuries for a week, Namibian cheetah Nabha has died at Kuno National Park, officials confirmed, adding that further details will emerge after the postmortem. With Nabha’s death, the cheetah count at Kuno now stands at 26, including nine adults (six females and three males) and 17 cubs born within the park.

Two male cheetahs at Gandhisagar are also reported to be healthy.

Of the 26 cheetahs at Kuno, 16 are currently in the wild and “performing very well,” said Cheetah Project Field Director Uttam Sharma. “They have adapted to the habitat, learned to live with co-predators, and are regularly hunting,” he added. Recently, anti-ecto-parasitic medication was administered to all cheetahs. Two mothers, Veera and Nirva, along with their newborn cubs, are also healthy and thriving.

India’s ambitious cheetah reintroduction project began in September 2022, decades after the species was declared extinct in the country, with the last sightings dating back to 1947. Under the project, 20 African cheetahs were brought to Kuno in phases, including eight from Namibia in September 2022 and 12 from South Africa in February 2023. 

In May 2023, the project suffered a setback when three cubs born to Namibian cheetah Jwala died due to extreme heat in Madhya Pradesh’s Kuno National Park. Following the incident, a solar-powered water lift system was installed in June to help protect cheetah cubs from harsh summer temperatures.