ATHAGARH: Carcass of a female leopard was found in Haridapasi jungle of Tigiria under Athagarh Forest Division on Sunday.
The big cat is believed to be more than 10 years old. The carcass was first spotted by a woodcutter in the jungle. Later, Forest officials led by Athagarh DFO Sasmita Lenka reached the spot and seized it.
On Monday, the postmortem was conducted in presence of Angul Conservator PK Mohapatra and the carcass disposed of as per the standard operating procedure of National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).
Lenka said preliminary investigation suggests that the big cat may have died due to old age as one of its canine teeth was missing. Starvation as a cause cannot be ruled out as it was not able to prey, she said.
Sample from the carcass has been collected and would be sent for further tests. The DFO said this was the first time a leopard carcass was found in Athagarh since big cats are not sighted in the division. The average lifespan of a leopard is around 12 years.
On the other hand, locals alleged that the leopard died after coming in contact with live wires set by poachers in the forest. Sources said villagers of Haridapasi had informed the local forest staff about presence of the leopard around 15 days back. However, the latter dismissed the villagers’ claims as a rumour.
The ill-fated leopard, which is suspected to have strayed into Haridapasi jungle from nearby forests, came in contact with the wires and was electrocuted in the wee hours of Sunday, they alleged.