Post mortem confirms death of leopards of hunger

The post mortem report of the two leopards, which were found dead an year ago, confirms that the death took place due to hunger.

In December 2017, two leopards were found dead under mysterious circumstances at Erlapadi and Yellare in Bailur. Both Erlapadi and Yellare are barely two kilometres away from each other. The possibilities of poisoning and ill health were not ruled out.

Hence, the post mortem was conducted.

One leopard, which was one and half years old, had got separated from its mother. As it was unable to hunt on its own, it could not survive and died. Another leopard, 3-4 years old, might have also died due to lack of food. The samples were sent to the laboratory in Bengaluru and it was found that the stomachs of the leopards were empty.

RFO Dinesh Kumar said that the area under forest had not declined in Udupi district. “However, the area under shrubs (Karmar haadi) has declined. In the past, there were 50 acres to 100 acres of such shrubs wherein deer, rabbits, and small animals were found in abundance. With the farmers cultivating horticultural crops by leveling shrubs, there has been a decline in the prey base for the leopards.”

The leopards have no shortage of food in the forest as the Kudremukh National Reserve Forest area covers the Karkala forest region. It is dense, Kumar said.

"The possibilities are that the leopards that are healthy stay back in the forest and lead a healthy life. While the wounded leopards come out of the forest and die out of hunger. This might be one of the reason for the death,” he added.