T15 or Kolarwali, the famous tigress from Madhya Pradesh’s Pench Tiger Reserve in Chhindwara district, earned the title of “super mom” after giving birth to 29 cubs, died following a prolonged illness, officials said on Sunday.
Officials said the tigress was 16 years old. Also known as Mataram, she gave birth to 29 cubs in eight cubs over the course of 11 years – between 2008 and 2018 – officials said, adding that 25 of the 29 cubs survived.
“The tiger was ill due to old age. She was last seen on January 14 near Bhura Dev Nalla. She was seen lying down. She was under the supervision of veterinarians and was unable to walk. Alok Mishra, field director of Pench Tiger Reserve, said, she died at 6.15 pm on Saturday.
“The exact cause of death will be known after the post-mortem, but prima facie it appears to be due to multi-organ failure due to old age,” he said.
As a female cub, the tigress was radio-collared in March 2008. While the radio caller later stopped working, she was again radio-callered in January 2010. In this way she was named as Collarwali, Alok Kumar, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Alok Kumar. (wildlife), said.
“Collarwali was the most popular tigress among tourists. They were born from T7, known as Badimada, and T1, known as Charger, in 2005. In 2008, a team of experts from Dehradun put a radio collar on him,” he said.
In May 2008, Collarwali gave birth to three cubs but they could not survive.
“In October 2010, she gave birth to five cubs at a time, increasing her popularity among wildlife lovers,” Kumar said.
“She lived in the forest for more than 16 years which is also a record. Her legacy is not limited to Pench as her female cub was shifted to Panna Tiger Reserve, which gave birth to five cubs and contributed greatly to the success of tiger rehabilitation project in Panna Tiger Reserve,” State Forest Scientist Aniruddha Mazumdar Research Institute Jabalpur said.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan paid tribute to the tigress.
“Tributes to ‘Super Tigress Mom’ Collarwali of @PenchMP’s pride @PenchMP & mother of 29 cubs who played a key role in achieving Tiger State status for MP. Central to the roar of cubs of ‘Rani’ of Pench Tiger Reserve The forests of the state will always resonate.