Keonjhar: The carcass of a sub-adult female leopard was found inside Kalapat reserve forest under Telkoi range in Keonjhar district. According to official sources, the carcass is more than 20 days old and was detected by the elephant squad. After receiving information, a team of forest staff and veterinary officials went to the spot, seized the carcass and started a probe.
“All skin, teeth, and nails are intact. Half of the skin has decomposed. The flesh has been eaten by scavengers,” said Dhanraj H.D., divisional forest officer (Keonjhar). As per National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) guidelines, the body parts are burnt with videography in the presence of a team of veterinarians, Vana Surakshya Samiti members, and a local representative from Badakhaman village of Talapada gram panchayat.
“The forest officials collected samples for toxicological analysis and forensic entomology and will send those to the Centre for Wildlife Health, OUAT Bhubaneswar. After that the cause of death would be known,” the DFO added. Prima facie, there seems to be no wildlife crime angle as all vital parts were intact.