3 tigers found dead in Tadoba in 5 days, forest department suspect poisoning

Two sub-adult tigers were found dead in the buffer area of the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Chandrapur, on Sunday afternoon by the forest department.

Two sub-adult tigers were found dead in the buffer area of the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Chandrapur, on Sunday afternoon by the forest department.

HT Image

Three carcasses have been recovered within five days after the decayed remains of a tigress was found last Wednesday morning (June 10). The two carcasses identified on Sunday were found 300 metres away from the one on Wednesday near Kondegaon talao, Moharli range in Tadoba buffer.

“The tigers found on Sunday are most likely the sub-adult cubs of the tigress from last Wednesday,” said G Guruprasad, deputy conservator of forest (DCF), TATR buffer.

At the same location where the tiger carcasses were recovered on Sunday, the carcasses of two langurs were also found, forest officials said. “We think one female and one male, but the bodies were highly decomposed. An enquiry is already underway and will be further escalated in nearby villages. The source of the suspected poisoning is unclear,” said NR Praveen, field director, TATR.

Other forest officials said the carcasses were about five to six days old. Viscera samples of the tigress were collected on Wednesday itself and sent for forensic analysis to Nagpur.

“The number of animals found dead indicate that they all may have died due to the same reason. Prima facie it appears that this may be a case of poisoning as no body parts were missing, which means poaching is ruled out. The carcasses do not have any injury marks; hence this is not the case of infighting,” said Guruprasad adding, “Their carcasses are even more putrefied than the mother. Based on the condition of the carcasses, we can say that the cubs are around eight months old.”

Guruprasad added that the post-mortem results of the tigress earlier in the week showed that she had eaten a wild boar. “There is a possibility that the boar may have been poisoned or this could be a case of water poisoning. However, our enquiry is underway across three nearby villages,” he said.

Surprisingly, no cattle kills have been recorded in this region for the past one year, the DCF said. “The area is non-forest land in the buffer of TATR but proximity to the adjoining core zone. The forensic analysis of all three tigers will reveal the final cause of death,” he said.

Cases reported on Sunday take the tally of tiger deaths in Maharashtra this year to seven, of which six have been reported from Chandrapur, in and around TATR.

Activists said the forest department and the chief wildlife warden (CWLW) needed to show the same alacrity in identifying culprits responsible for the death of the three tigers. “While the CWLW proposes to capture and sterilise tigers in Chandrapur, tigers are being killed under his watch by locals. Rather than issuing regular capture orders for sub-adult tigers, there needs to be proper evidence collection to ensure that the guilty don’t get bail and are punished,” said Sarita Subramaniam from Earth Brigade Foundation.

A senior forest official said, “Poisoning of tigers was also a form of conflict, and all pros and cons need to be weighed before coming to conclusions.”