Two Asian palm civets were rescued from Sarapaka village, located along the Manuguru forest stretch in Telangana’s Bhadradri Kothagudem district. The incident took place on Saturday in the village which falls in the Burgampadu forest range.
The local Forest Department officials were informed about the presence of the two palm civets by a resident who saw them taking shelter in his house. Soon, the officials trapped the animals using a net and released them in the nearby forest.
Speaking to TNM, Forest Range Officer (FRO) Bharati said that palm civets are not spotted very often in the region, though the forests are known to hold a wide variety of species. The FRO said, “A local resident informed us about the presence of two palm civets (adivi pillulu) in his house on Saturday afternoon. The beat officers rescued them and released them in the nearby forest.”
The FRO added, “We have reported the spotting of the species to the higher authorities.”
Bhadradri Kothagudem District Forest Officer (DFO) Pradeep Kumar Shetty told TNM that the palm civet is not a rare species and is often found deep in the forests of Manuguru. He said, “As soon as they were spotted near a house in Sarapaka, they were rescued and released into the forest.”
When asked about the possible reasons behind the palm civets venturing into human settlements, the DFO said, “Sometimes their habitat is disturbed due to encroachments or due to infrastructure development near the forests, this might force them to venture out.”
The Kothagudem forests host a range of wildlife species. Manuguru, Yellandu, Paloncha, Bhadrachalam and Kothagudem are known for species such as mountain goat, sambar, wild boar and bear apart from spotted deer, nilgai and leopards.
The district’s Kinnerasani Wildlife Sanctuary is known to host tiger, panther, chinkara, chousinghas, sambar, cheetal, gaur, hyena, jackal, wild boar, sloth bear, and blackbuck. Tourists can also spot a number of birds like jungle fowl, quail, partridge, peafowl, spoonbills, teals, and doves.