Bhubaneswar: Continuous rain over the past two months has severely affected camera-trap monitoring of tigress Zeenat and her four cubs, while the GPS unit fitted in the radio collar of tigress Yamuna has malfunctioned, limiting authorities’ ability to track her movements in Similipal Tiger Reserve.Tigresses Zeenat and Yamuna had been brought to Similipal in Nov 2024 as part of an inter-state tiger translocation programme. While Zeenat has given birth to four cubs, Yamuna hasn’t had a single litter.Similipal field director Prakash Gogineni said the GPS component on Yamuna’s radio collar has become dysfunctional. “We found that the GPS fixed in Yamuna’s radio collar has stopped working, probably due to battery problems. However, we get signal from its VHF. Periodically, we are able to know where it is roaming. A final call on radio collar removal would be taken after VHF also stops working. Radio collars fitted in tigers are removed remotely and drop automatically,” said Gogineni.The failure of the GPS system has significantly reduced the precision of monitoring. Unlike satellite-based tracking that provides location data remotely, VHF tracking requires field personnel equipped with antennas to be stationed within roughly a 1-km radius of the tiger’s location to receive signals.Yamuna, now about four years old, was released into the wild in Nov 2024. Despite being released to boost Similipal’s tiger population, the big cat has largely remained within Kuldiha Wildlife Sanctuary, which forms part of the larger Similipal Biosphere landscape but lies outside the reserve’s administrative jurisdiction.At the same time, officials are anxiously waiting for fresh visual evidence of tigress Zeenat and her offspring. On June 2, camera traps captured Zeenat carrying one of her cubs in her mouth, confirming that she had given birth to four cubs. Forest officials estimated at the time that the cubs were around three weeks old.“The cubs are more than four months old now and must be moving actively with their mother. Once fresh camera trap images are available, their health condition can be assessed,” said a wildlife officer.Officials hope weather conditions improve soon to resume effective camera-trap monitoring and to obtain fresh insights into the progress of Similipal’s newest tiger family.