BHUBANESWAR: The Bhitarkanika National Park is bracing for the annual winter population estimation of estuarine crocodiles. The park will remain closed for visitors between December 24 and January 2 for this purpose. Keeping the tidal situation and new moon occurrence, the Wildlife Wing has notified the closure so that estimation can be facilitated. This time around, the park authorities plan to go beyond the territorial limits to assess the population which has drawn global attention for being huge as well as sustainable. In 2009-10, the population was pegged at 1,610, registering a 3 per cent rise. Since depradation is an issue with peripheral villages of Bhitarkanika, the park authorities had, last year, hit upon an innovative strategy under which people were requested to inform sighting of crocodiles beyond the boundary of the protected area. Once reports came in, the park officials posted signboards as a cautionary measure for the villagers. It did work. Taking the move ahead, the Bhitarkanika National Park officials plan to survey certain outside pockets as part of the estimation process which is carried out during the day as well as in the night. While direct sighting is the method for calculating the adults and huge ones, the wildlife officials also go out in the night to check on the young and sub-adults. “The number of the dominant males in their respective territories along with the yearlings and hatchlings indicate how healthy the population is,” Divisional Forest Officer, Rajnagar Mangrove Forest Division Manoj Mohapatra said. The crocodiles are measured basing on their head size. Length of the predator is taken as 7.2 times its head length. In the last count, the population included three crocodiles measuring more than 20 feet. It was in 1975, the Ministry of Forests and Environment, in collaboration with UNDP, started the crocodile breeding and rearing project in Dangamal at Bhitarkanika. The success of the project led to a rise in the crocodile population as the reptiles began to inhabit the creeks, rivers as well as water bodies. Three days ago, a 10 feet crocodile had entered the cattle shed of a nearby village. Once the report came in, the park officials captured and released it into the waters.
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