KOCHI: A tiger attacked an elephant in the Idamalayar forest. In the ensuing fight, both the predator and the prey succumbed to injuries, making it a curious case. Evidence at the spot suggests a prolonged fight between the two giants, a rare incident in Kerala forests. Experts say the possibility of other elephants in the herd attacking the tiger to protect the injured jumbo cannot be ruled out.
The incident occurred in a grassland near Kulathupetti deep inside the Idamalayar forest range under the Malayattoor division on Tuesday, forest officers said. A forest patrolling team found the carcasses on Wednesday. There were multiple injuries on the carcasses while the age of the animals was yet to be assessed.
While a tiger-elephant clash is rare, this is not the first such incident reported in Kerala, said wildlife expert Dr P S Easa. “Tiger is the only predator that attacks the elephant. A similar incident was recorded in a camera trap in the Silent Valley forest in 2009-10. Tigers normally don’t attack adult elephants, but they do follow herds with juvenile elephants,” he said. In 2017, there were reports of tigers killing elephants in Wayanad.
Malayattoor DFO Ravikumar Meena has constituted a team of forest officers, representatives of wildlife conservation activists, veterinary doctors and a scientist to conduct the postmortem of the tiger and the elephant on Thursday.