Chitwan National Park Begins Search for Gharial Nests in Rapti River

Chitwan. The search for gharial crocodile nests in the Rapti River has commenced. Chitwan National Park conducts this search annually during the months of Chaitra and Baisakh.

According to the park's information officer, Abinash Thapa Magar, the search operation began on Chaitra 1 and will continue until Baisakh 10. He stated that two members of the Bote community have been mobilized for this task.

Once the nests are located, staff will be deployed to begin the process of egg collection. He said, “Currently, the identification of nests is underway. Immediately after this, the egg collection process will begin.” He informed that the eggs collected from the nests will be taken to the crocodile breeding center at the office to initiate the hatching process.

While in previous years the park conducted searches for crocodile nests in both the Rapti and Narayani rivers, this year the search is limited to the Rapti River only.