BHUBANESWAR: A five-year-old female pseudo-melanistic tiger was found dead in the core area of Similipal Tiger Reserve on Thursday evening, putting wildlife officials on alert.
The carcass was detected by patrolling staff near Jatiani camp under the UBK range of Similipal South Division on August 6 evening, prompting STR authorities to launch a probe into the incident.
PCCF (Wildlife) Prem Kumar Jha said the carcass was found in the deep core area of the tiger reserve and that there were no visible signs of infection. The exact cause of death will be known after the laboratory report is received, he said.
Jha said a post-mortem examination was conducted on August 7 in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) of the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
A team of experts, including veterinary surgeons and an NTCA-nominated representative, examined the carcass and collected biological samples for toxicological, pathological and other laboratory tests.
The examination found the carcass to be fresh, with no visible injury marks or other obvious indications of the cause of death.
The collected samples have been sent to the Centre for Wildlife Health (CWH) at Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) for detailed laboratory analysis.
“The exact cause of death will be ascertained after the laboratory report is received,” PCCF (Wildlife) Jha said.
STR Field Director Prakash Chand Gogineni said that after completion of the post-mortem examination, the carcass was disposed of through incineration in the presence of forest officials and staff.
The entire process, from the post-mortem examination to the reduction of the carcass to ashes, was videographed and photographed as per the prescribed protocol.
Following a camera-trap exercise, Forest Department officials had recently estimated the tiger population of Similipal at 35, including 17 males and 18 females. The population also included 19 pseudo-melanistic (black) tigers. Besides, there are 16 tiger cubs in the big-cat habitat.