Kendrapara: Captive crocodile Gori, a rare albino and the special attraction of Bhitarkanika National Park, has laid eggs once again in her pen after a gap of two years.
The female captive albino has laid eggs at her pen in Dangamala Crocodile Research Centre in the national park, said ACF-cum-range officer of Kanika, Subrat Kumar Patra.
The 44-year-old reptile laid around 40 eggs and was guarding the eggs in the pen for the last couple of days. Earlier, in July 2017, Gori had laid eggs. But hatchlings did not come out of the eggs as they were infertile.
It seems this year also the captive reptile might have laid infertile eggs, according to forest personnel.
“We are monitoring the behaviour of Gori as in past it was seen that whenever the crocodile laid eggs she would skip eating and guard the eggs,” said Patra.
Gori shot to fame in the 1980s after she shunned mates. The forest officials had tried in 1985, 1987, 1990 and 1992 to facilitate the crocodile’s mating by releasing male crocodiles into the pen. But the search for her male partners was stopped after Gori turned violent and injured one of the male crocodiles. She had lost her left eye in the battle.
A wild nest was spotted on the Kalibhanjdiha Island inside the sanctuary area in 1975. About 25 crocodile eggs, which were laid in the wild, were collected from the site by the forest officials and were hatched. Later, 24 hatchlings emerged from the eggs including partial albino Gori.
Gori was hatched artificially at the Dangamala Crocodile Research Centre June 26, 1975. Due to its rare whitish colour and for doing further research work on her, the wildlife officials had decided in 1975 to keep the baby albino crocodile in a pen. The pen in which Gori has been staying since her birth was expanded 11 times and was connected with the nearby creek in 2014.
In the ongoing nesting season of estuarine crocodiles, forest personnel of Bhitarkanika National Park have spotted as many as 92 nests within Kanika forest and wildlife range.
PNN
