COIMBATORE: Unable to establish the cause of death through autopsy, officials of Gudalur forest division have decided to send samples of the internal organs of a leopard, which was found dead in O-Valley on Tuesday, to labs in Chennai and Coimbatore on Thursday.
D Venkatesh, Field Director Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR), and Gudalur District Forest Officer (DFO) Kommu Omkaram took the decision to send samples to the Advanced Institute for Wildlife Conservation (AIWC) in Chennai and SACON in Anaikatti since veterinary assistant surgeon K Rajesh Kumar was unable to ascertain the cause of death after an autopsy on Wednesday.
The five-year-old leopard was found dead near a tea estate in barwood south forest beat, and the teeth and claws of the animal were intact.
Officials suspect the animal died at least 36 hours ago and did not find poisonous substances near the carcass. An official said, “Apart from bite marks by other animals, there were no external marks to indicate snaring or electrocution. We will send samples for analysis to ascertain if it died of poisoning. The result will arrive in the next few weeks,” the official added.
It may be recalled that a six-year-old female elephant was found dead in O-valley in July. A packet of Organophosphorus, a pesticide used in banana plantations, was found in its small intestine during post-mortem.