People visiting the Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udya, also known as the Byculla Zoo will soon be able to set their eyes upon the garden’s latest attractions, starting tomorrow. Reportedly, the Byculla Zoo in Mumbai had received a pair of leopards and a male sloth, all the way from Nagpur, nearly a month ago and these were under quarantine till now.

All three animals have now completed their protocol quarantine and are presently undergoing their acclimatisation process, informed officials. If everything goes well, the new animals can soon be spotted at the Byculla.

Three animals from Gorewada Zoo in Nagpur, are now officially a part of the Byculla Zoo family in Mumbai. These include Shiva, a male sloth bear and two leopards, all aged about two years, who were transported via roadways over a two-night journey.

This transportation strategy was adopted to avoid the scalding hot weather conditions, traffic and noise of the day, informed Byculla Zoo Director, Sanjay Tripathi. As per reports, a veterinarian and two zookeepers accompanied the animals to monitor their health throughout the commute.

This animal transfer programme has come as a symbiotic move between zoological gardens. While the plan of action frees up space at the Nagpur zoo, it adds to the Mumbai Zoo’s diversity. The Byculla centre has now a match for its one year old Shivani female sloth bear, in addition to two new leopards. Visitors can also spot another leopard pair named Drogone and Pinto who were brought in from Mangalore’s Pilikula zoo in 2019.

Notably, this exchange drive is a part of the programmes approved by the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) to declutter Gorewada rescue centre in Nagpur, which is touted to be the largest zoo safari in the country. For this, the Nagpur cell had also sent a a pair of tigers to Mumbai’s Sanjay Gandhi National Park.