White tigers dying young at Nehru zoo

HYDERABAD: White tigers in captivity are likely to die younger compared to yellow tigers, zoo authorities said following statistics revealing that the Nehru Zoological Park recorded 33 tiger deaths in the last 18 years. Of these 17 were white tigers and seven of them were under eight years old. Of the 16 yellow tigers that died, only two were young.

The data that was collated after the death of a six-year-old pregnant white tigress (Swati) last week due to sickness has raised the eyebrows of wildlife experts and fuelled doubts whether the big cat died due to the extreme summer heat. "The total number of deaths is certainly huge for a controlled facility. There have been instances of negligence at zoos in the state, resulting in deaths of tigers," said Fazal Ali Adil, an expert on tigers.

Wildlife experts said a thorough probe must be conducted to find out the circumstances under which several white tigers died young and if needed, steps must be taken to move them to a better environment.

However, zoo authorities say white tigers have low immunity levels. "Our data shows that the average lifespan of a white tiger at the zoo is only 12 years, while normal tigers have an average lifespan of 16 years," said zoo curator Shankaran. White tigers have a genetic mutation that renders their skin pale and sometimes without stripes. They are also known to be genetically predisposed to illnesses, officials said.

Meanwhile, the reason for the latest death would be known only after the histo-pathological report arrives next week. Till then, zoo staff has kept the remaining white tigers under close observation. "We have ruled out diet as the cause of death as all animals get the same treatment. Though the white tiger which died was isolated from other animals, our staff is on the lookout for signs of illness in other animals," Shankaran said.

Experts who performed the autopsy on Swati said the animal's vital organs like spleen, liver, lungs and even some parts of the brain had shown congestion, indicating multi-organ failure. But zoo director Mallikarjun Rao ruled out negligence as the cause of death. "Animals come to the zoo at different stages in their lifecycle from other places. There are various causes for deaths and negligence is certainly not one of them," he said.