Bhubaneswar, Aug 28: From a translocated tigress finding her footing in a new landscape to becoming a mother of four, Zeenat’s journey has emerged as a significant success story for Odisha’s tiger conservation efforts.

With the tigress now firmly established in Similipal, the Forest department is preparing to remove the radio collar that has tracked her movements since her arrival.

Zeenat, a four-year-old tigress translocated from Maharashtra’s Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) to Odisha in November 2024, has successfully established her territory in the Similipal landscape after giving birth to four cubs in the wild in May this year.

With her movements now considered stable, the Forest department has decided to remove the radio collar fitted around her neck to monitor her movements.

“We have planned to remove the radio collar by October or November this year,” said Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) field director Prakash Chand Gogineni.

According to Gogineni, the collar can be removed remotely, meaning Zeenat will not have to be tranquilised for the procedure. Once the collar is released, Forest personnel will collect it from the field.

Officials believe the possibility of Zeenat leaving the Similipal landscape again is now extremely low. Although she had attempted to move out of the landscape shortly after her release, the establishment of her territory and the birth of four cubs indicate that she has now adapted well to her new habitat.

Meanwhile, the department will continue to closely monitor Jamuna, the other tigress brought from Tadoba under the first phase of the tiger supplementation programme. Jamuna is currently in the Kuldiha landscape and remains fitted with a radio collar. Unlike Zeenat, however, Jamuna is yet to reproduce.

Buoyed by the success of the first phase, the wildlife wing is now planning the second phase of the tiger supplementation programme. A proposal is in place to introduce another pair of big cats from central India into Similipal.

If the necessary approvals are secured, one male and one female tiger will be translocated to the Similipal Tiger Reserve. Tadoba is once again likely to be the preferred source, following the successful translocation of Zeenat and Jamuna.