WATCH: 11 peahens and 4 peacocks found dead near Osmanabad

In a gruesome incident, 15 peafowls, including four peacocks and 11 peahens were found dead near Osmanabad in Marathwada. Two more peacocks are serious but are out of danger and local activists have alleged that these fatalities could be a result of poaching. 

The peacock is India’s national bird and by virtue of its inclusion in the Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, is entitled to the highest level of protection. However, these birds are often hunted for their tail feathers which are used for religious and cultural purposes, and meat. 

Local environment activist and wildlife photographer Manoj Dolare said the birds were found on Saturday at Gaddevdhari, which is located at a distance of around 10km from Osmanabad. 

“Some grain like maize and jowar was found strewn around them and their stomachs were also bloated leading to suspicion that they may have been poisoned to death,” said Dolare, who also teaches at a local college. 

He opined that the birds may have been killed for their feathers by hunters or by local farmers whose crops were being destroyed by them. 

A forest department official said preliminary investigations by a five-member team of veterinarians had ruled out the chances of poisoning. “They seem to have died of a heat-stroke due to the rising temperature. We have sent their body parts, the grain found near these carcasses and the water from the nearby water body for laboratory tests,” the official said, adding that the two peacocks were recovering. 

However, Dolare pointed out that it was unlikely that 15 of these birds could have been affected by sun-stroke and died at the same time.