Rare sight: Sloth bear spotted on camera carrying two cubs in Kawal Tiger Reserve

A camera trap in Kawal Tiger Reserve captured a rare moment of a sloth bear carrying two cubs on its back while walking along a forest track. Officials say such sightings are uncommon in the Telangana reserve

Mancherial: Forest officials at Kawal Tiger Reserve were delighted after a CCTV camera trap captured a rare and heart-warming moment, a sloth bear carrying two cubs on its back while moving along a forest track.

The footage was recorded in the forests under the Jannaram forest division around 7 am on March 2. Officials said such sightings are uncommon in the reserve, making the capture particularly significant.

---

The camera trap had been installed as part of intensified monitoring of tigers inhabiting the reserve. However, instead of a tiger, the device recorded the sloth bear calmly walking along the track with the cubs perched on its back. Forest officials noted that sloth bears are usually seen moving with their cubs walking beside them in the wild.

“It’s an unusual sight. Generally, bears move in the wild with their cubs walking beside them,” an official said.

Kawal Tiger Reserve, notified as the 41st tiger reserve in the country in 2012, has a core area of 893 sq km and a buffer zone of 1,120 sq km. The reserve spreads across Adilabad, Kumram Bheem Asifabad, Nirmal and Mancherial districts. Despite its vast landscape, the reserve has remained under scrutiny from environmentalists for failing to attract and retain tigers as expected. Encroachment of forest land and felling of trees in the core area are cited as major challenges affecting the habitat.