Namibian male cheetah 'Oban' moves out of Kuno National Park again, spotted 15 km away from safe zone

Five-year-old Oban - one of the eight Namibian cheetahs - has once again slipped out of Kuno National Park (KNP) and was spotted in neighbouring Shivpuri forest division around 15 km from his habitat.

According to forest officials at KNP, male cheetah has moved out of enclosures for the second time within the span of two weeks. Last time, Oban was brought back to KNP from a nearby farm at village after five days of efforts by forest officials and was tranquilised.

Last time, Oban had moved out of KNP on April 2 and was brought back on April 6.

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This time, it has ventured much further, putting the forest officials accountable to ensure his safety on their toes. "Oban is out of KNP's core area of 748 sq km, and its surrounding 487 sq km buffer zone since Sunday and is in neighbouring Shivpuri forest division," a forest official told IANS.

Forest officials said that this time they will not tranquilise him for time being as the process may affect his health. Officials have observed that Namibian cheetahs seem to prefer water-logged fields and river valleys over dense forest forests.

Last week, Oban was spotted sitting in the cool patches of the river valley or under the shade of trees before exploring beyond the protected area under KNP on Saturday night. However, by next morning, he was spotted around 15 km away from the protected zone.

However, the officials claim that Oban does not pose a threat to humans, nor do humans pose a threat to it. So there will be no need for tranquilisation to bring it back. They said Oban's movements are being monitored to locate his whereabouts.