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Tiger rests on Pilibhit village wall, becomes a spectacle for onlookers
A tigress strayed into a village in Uttar Pradesh, India, and slept on a wall while residents captured the spectacle on their cellphones. The tigress was later tranquilized and moved to a forest range headquarters. Experts believe the tigress may be unwell.
A tigress strayed into a quiet village in Pilbihit district of Uttar Pradesh, leapt onto a fragile wall, paced for a bit and then put herself to sleep, all while startled residents made a beeline for the spectacle and stood perilously, metres away from the feline, capturing the unfolding drama on their cellphones.
As videos of the two-year-old tigress, which strayed out of the Pilibhit tiger reserve forest, went viral on social media, foresters rushed to the spot and cordoned her off from residents of Atkona village using feeble nets.
The onlookers, however, seemed blissfully unaware of the dangers of such proximity to a big cat.
Hours later, the tigress was tranquilised and transported to the Mala forest range headquarters, said officials.
Naveen Khandelwal, deputy director of the Pilibhit tiger reserve, said, “A thorough physical examination of the tigress is being carried out by wildlife and veterinary experts to decide the further course of action regarding the big cat’s release.”
Experts, however, said the tigress seemed to be unwell and displaying symptoms of canine distemper, a viral illness that is often fatal for felines.
Atkona village, despite being framed by the tiger reserve, is largely unused to such surprises, said residents.
So, when the sound of barking dogs rang through the sky early on Monday, even before the sun began to streak the sky, Sindhu Singh and his family were caught by surprise.
The rudely awoken family rushed out of their house to placate the dogs, only to run into a tiger, resting calmly near the wall of their house.
The stunned family raised an alarm that roused the entire village, but did little to faze the two-year-old cat, which scaled the wall and made it home for the next few hours.
Around her gathered a bemused village, with residents gauging that it was the opportune moment for photographs and videos. More discerning residents alerted forest authorities.
The big cat remained calm and kept pacing the wall. It eventually sat first on its haunches and looked around at her audience, before licking her thick fur. She then eventually lay down on all fours, which is when forest guards struck her with a tranquiliser dart on her left thigh.
Hours later, when the tranquiliser kicked in, the tiger tried to walk away, but was overpowered by forest guards, who shifted her into a cage.
Wildlife experts, however, pointed out that the tigress made no attempt to escape for several hours, behaviour they called “unusual”.
Ramesh Pandey, former field director of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve and currently inspector general of forests in the Union environment and forest ministry, said: “It is quite strange that a big cat stayed at the same place for a prolonged period amid human presence and displayed no aggression or irritation.”
