Leopard found dead in Mungeli, officials suspect territorial fight

Raipur: A leopard was found dead in a forested area of Chhattisgarh’s Mungeli district. Forest officials said they suspect the death to be a fallout of a territorial fight between the two big cats.The carcass was spotted on Wednesday evening in the Kanchanpur beat of the Lormi forest range, about 200 metres from the Kanchanpur barrier in a reserve forest compartment.According to forest officials, the barrier watchman noticed the dead leopard and alerted authorities. A team rushed to the spot, secured the area and guarded the carcass overnight.Villagers told officials they heard growls and sounds of a violent struggle between two leopards in the forest shortly before the carcass was found.

Preliminary assessments pointed to turf fight, officials said, adding that the exact cause could only be ascertained after the post-mortem.Officials believe the other leopard may also have been injured in the suspected fight before retreating deeper into the forest. Search teams were combing the area for the other leopard but were yet to trace it till last reports.“The villagers reported hearing sounds from a fierce fight between two leopards. However, the cause of death could only be determined once the post-mortem report is out,” deputy ranger Dashansh Suryavanshi told TOI.The carcass will be sent to Kanan Pendari for post-mortem by a team of wildlife experts, officials said, adding that it would conclusively determine if the feline died in a clash or due to some other cause.