You might have seen signs while travelling through a wildlife sanctuary or a national park that the tourists are not allowed to feed the wild animals. Still, some people ignore it and feed the wild animals for fun or for taking pictures. Well, a picture went viral on the internet in which a person from a Mahindra XUV500 can be seen feeding a deer. The department of Karnataka Forest Department has found the person and has taken an action against him.
The person has been identified as a journalist from New Delhi. The journalist works in a national channel. The incident happened on August 3rd at 11 AM on the road that links Bandipur and Ooty. The picture was taken by someone who was coming from the opposite side and the picture was uploaded on the internet.
The officers of Bandipur Tiger Reserve tracked down the vehicle. The journalist was penalised and then let go after a warning. He also admitted his mistake. Travellers often throw their food on the roads or feed the animals. This causes animals to wander around the roadside in hunt of food. Due to this, there have been incidents where the animals were run over by vehicles that were coming at high speeds.
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A forest officer said, “We have issued orders banning taking pictures in the wild, stopping vehicles and at the same time, we have installed signboards warning tourists to respect the wildlife as we are in their territory. Despite this, the rules are violated. We are levying a fine for tourists pulling over, getting out of their vehicles, clicking selfies, walking about and even feeding animals. They ignore signages,”
Wild animals are unpredictable
You never know how a wild animal would behave in a situation. If a person feeds an animal on the side of the road and then leaves, the animal can expect that the next person would also feed them. Due to this, they would return to the same spot. It is not necessary that the next person also feeds them. The animals might block the road and can get aggressive if the person does not feed them.
Wild animals are sensitive
Wild animals are very sensitive to small things. For instance, diesel clatter, cranking the engine, horns, revving the engine or anything that the animals are unaware of or are listening to for the very first time. This is one of the reasons that during Safaris the vehicles have to turn off their engine because the wild animals can hear them from a distance.
Because these animals are not familiar any sudden movements can also make them angry. They might attack you because they think that you are trying to harm them. You must remember that you are entering their territory and it is their home and they would do anything to protect it. If you come across a herd on the road then it is best to park the vehicle on the side of the road and wait for them to leave. You do not want to scare them. Animals like rhinos and elephants easily crush a car because of their weight.
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