Tiger Dies in Pench Reserve; State Loses 19 Big Cats in 13 Months
A tiger was found dead in Pench Reserve yesterday and with this, state has lost 19 big bats in the last 13 months, reported PTI.
“A seven-year-old radio-collared big cat was found dead in a lake at Karmajhiri range of Pench Reserve yesterday,” the park director K Nayak was quoted as saying
He also said that ‘the possibility of the tiger being poisoned can’t be ruled out’, said report.
Tiger’s viscera has been sent to a Sagar district-based labortary for tests, said Nayak, adding that the tiger was spotted on January 25 and was healthy.
Nayak said that tiger’s body was disposed of after post-mortem, which revealed that its kidney enlarged, report said.
Last month, two tigers had died in the Pench reserve and officials had said that the deaths were due to sever cold.
In 2009, 18 big cats died in the state, including four tigers each in Kanha Tiger Reserve and Pench, as also three in Bandhavgarh tiger reserve.
With the last death of the tiger in Pench, the state has lost 17 tigers in different reserves, besides two in the wild in last 13 months, officials were quoted as saying.
Report said that forest department officials claimed that the deaths were largely ‘due to territorial fights among tigers and old age-related problems’.
