KOCHI: A female black panther, aged around three years, was caught in a cage placed by the forest department at Kulathumon in Kalanjoor panchayat of Pathanamthitta district on Friday night. The animal was shifted to Puthur Zoological Park where it has been kept in quarantine and veterinarians are monitoring its health. Konni DFO S B Mithun Mohan said the panther will be released into the wild after ensuring its health condition.
According to senior forest officials, this is the first time a black panther has been caught in Keralam. Black panthers, a melanistic colour variant of a leopard, are seen in the protected areas of Western Ghats.
Around five wards of Kalanjoor panchayat are located near forest fringes and residents complain that leopards have been killing dogs, goats and cattle frequently.
A video was circulated on social media last month, in which a black panther was seen walking through the hills of Kalanjoor. Villagers said the black panther spotted last month was bigger and the one caught on Friday could be its child. The forest department had trapped four leopards from Kalanjoor over the past four years.
“Forest officials placed the cage around four months ago after we launched protests. Leopards have been roaming around the hamlets of Thattamkudi, Poomaruthykuzhy, Pothupara, Kalleli and Kulathumon for the past few months and people are afraid of stepping out during night. We have urged the forest department to place more traps,” said M Manu, a resident of Kulathumon.
“Though the leopards have not attacked people, we are living in constant fear. A black panther had jumped in front of a school bus two months back and parents are escorting children to school everyday. Last week also two dogs were killed by the leopard,” said panchayat member Jiji Pushpan.