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Leopard, 2 cubs found dead near Mysuru, poisoning suspected
Bengaluru: A leopard and her two cubs were found dead in the Belavadi Industrial Area, about 12 km from Mysuru city, on Saturday, forest department officials said, suspecting that big cats were poisoned
Bengaluru:
A leopard and her two cubs were found dead in the Belavadi Industrial Area, about 12 km from Mysuru city, on Saturday, forest department officials said, suspecting that big cats were poisoned.
The mother leopard was about 5 years old and the cubs were around a year old, officials said.
Deputy conservator of forests (DCF), Mysuru, Prashanth Kumar said that a half-eaten carcass of a dog was found near the leopard. “It is suspected that the dog was poisoned and kept there to lure the leopard,” Kumar said, adding that the leopard and her cubs might have died after eating the poisoned dog.
He said the standard operating procedure stipulated by the National Tiger Conservation Authority in such cases has been followed. The post-mortem was conducted and recorded in the presence of senior officials. “The viscera of the leopard carcasses have been sent to the Institute of Animal Health and Veterinary Biologicals at Bengaluru and the Forensic Science Laboratory in Mysuru. Once the report is available, we will be able to tell the cause of death conclusively. But it is very clear that this is an unnatural death,” Kumar said.
The department has registered a case under the Wildlife Protection Act and an investigation has been ordered. A sniffer dog has been engaged to track those who poisoned the dog.
“There were no instances of leopard spotting in these areas in recent times and the motive behind the poisoning remains unclear. At the same time, the State Pollution Control Board was asked to take samples of water from a nearby lake to examine if there was a high level of pollution in the lake, which caused their death,” Kumar said.
A few days ago, a video of a mother leopard and a few cubs crossing a road had gone viral on social media. Kumar said they were different since the leopards in the video were smaller.
The outskirts of Mysuru are an ideal habitat for leopards as the city is surrounded by reserve forests, sugarcane fields and jungles. Leopards are seen stalking cattle and street dogs near the city.
