On Sunday, Kaziranga National Park officials found 14 more carcasses of animals, taking the number of animals drowned to 573. The worst floods in the last 25 years were witnessed in 1988 when 1,203 animals perished, while in 1998, more than 650 animals, including 29 rhinos, were killed.
Many of the reserve's 152 anti-poaching camps are underwater; 16 of these had to be shifted to other locations when the water level of the Brahmaputra rose on June 29. The mud tracks, crucial for the movement of park officials and forest guards, too, are damaged. Most animals killed were either too old to escape the hungry tides or too young.
"Although the animals adapt well with flood-dependent ecology of Kaziranga, the ones too young are left behind. So are old and diseased animals," said M Firoz Ahmed, a wildlife biologist of Aaranyak.
"We found 14 more carcasses of hog deer and sambars in Kaziranga. We're still looking for more carcasses. We're using elephants to move inside the park as all roads are damaged," said park director S Bora. Bewilderingly, despite the magnitude of the deluge, helicopters haven't been used to see where human intervention may help in reducing the scale of the unfolding tragedy.
A large number of animals migrated to elevated grounds in the adjoining Karbi Anglong area when 80% of the park area was inundated on June 29, when, according to Assam environment and forest minister Rockybul Hussain, water level in Kaziranga touched 76.46m - 1.44m above the danger level.
Of the 573 animals killed, 14 are Assam's famed one-horned rhinos which are on the endangered list, one elephant, one wild buffalo, 486 hog deer, 10 swamp deer, 21 sambhars, 31 wild boars, two hog badgers, two gaurs, one jackal and five porcupines. While the water level dropped to 74.5m, it's still too early to rule out more animal deaths.
"We are assessing the extent of damage to park infrastructure. It will take some time to complete the exercise," said Hussain.
Despite the loss of wildlife during floods, Kaziranga's ecology is intricately linked to it. Located on the southern banks of the Brahmaputra, the annual floods recharge the vast grassland and 200-odd wetlands dotting the park for the survival of carnivores and herbivores. In 2006 and 2009, when the state experienced a drought-like situation, animals in Kaziranga, especially rhinos, faced a lack of fresh vegetation.
