Oldest tigress in Bhopal's Van Vihar national park dies

'Priya', the oldest tigress in the Van Vihar National Park here in Madhya Pradesh, died due to age-related issues, officials said on Wednesday. The big cat breathed her last on the intervening night of Monday and Tuesday, Van Vihar veterinarian Dr. Atul Gupta said, adding that the tigress had been unwell for nearly a month and had stopped eating of late.

'Priya' was brought to the national park from Jaipur in 2006 after she was rescued from a circus. "Tigers normally have a life-span of 15-16 years in the wild, whereas in captivity they survive for a comparatively longer period due to the protected environment and care given to them," Gupta said.

Last rites of the big cat were performed after mandatory postmortem, he added. In the Van Vihar National Park, the animals are kept in their near-natural habitat.

Van Vihar allows easy access to the visitors through a road passing through the park. Security of animals assured from poachers by building trenches and walls, chain-link fence and by providing natural habitat to the animals..

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