Leopard trapped in snare in Gudalur found dead

Udhagamandalam: A three-year-old male leopard was on Wednesday found dead near Gudalur in the Nilgiris after it was trapped into a snare set up for wild boars. Forest department officials suspect that the animal might have died of suffocation after metallic wire got tightened to its neck when it tried to escape from the snare. Officials have registered a case and investigation is on.
The leopard was found dead in a private farm near Addikunna village falling under Cherambadi range in the Gudalur division of forests. "A scar was found on the animal's neck. A metallic wire was also found on the carcass," S N Thejasvi, district forest officer, Gudalur division, told TOI. "The animal might have died of suffocation. The trap might have been meant for wild boars. But, we are not sure," he further said. According to the official, a case has been registered and investigation is on. "As the animal was found in a private farmland and the area is dominated by tribal population, we don't want to divulge more details at this juncture," Thejasvi said. Officials have collected samples of the carcass and they would be send for lab test. After the postmortem, the carcass of the animal was burnt inside the forest area as per the procedure prescribed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA). tnn