Leopard found electrocuted atop a 12-foot pole, baffles forest officials
Authorities were surprised by how the animal managed to climb the pole since there were no trees close by from which it could’ve jumped.
A male leopard died of electrocution when it climbed up a 12-foot electric pole at Mallaram village of Nizamabad district on Monday.
The villagers on their way to the fields early in the morning were shocked to find the limp body of the animal hanging from the top of the electric pole. They immediately alerted the local forest officials, who then brought the body down before sending it to the Nizamabad veterinary hospital for an autopsy. The post mortem report stated that the feline died from electrocution.
Speaking to HT, Nizamabad divisional forest officer VSLV Prasad said it was surprising how the animal managed to get to the top of the pole as there were no trees around.
“Leopards are capable of climbing up the long trees, and so, this leopard also might have climbed the pole like any other tree,” he said, adding that once atop, the leopard likely came in contact with high tension wires, resulting in its electrocution.
“It appears the leopard entered the area from the neighbouring forest which is just half a kilometre away.”
Prasad said leopards normally enter villages from surrounding forest areas in search of prey like cattle and sheep. However, there were no complaints about wild cats entering the village in the recent past.
The initial suspicion was that the animal’s death may have been caused by poachers, but forest officials later ruled it out.
“It was five-year-old male leopard weighing nearly 80 kgs. It is virtually impossible for poachers to dump the body on the top of a 12-ft electric pole. Moreover, the poachers generally dump the body of the wild animals after skinning it and removing its nails and teeth. But here, nothing of that sort happened,” Prasad said.
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Authorities were surprised by how the animal managed to climb the pole since there were no trees close by from which it could’ve jumped.
A male leopard died of electrocution when it climbed up a 12-foot electric pole at Mallaram village of Nizamabad district on Monday.
The villagers on their way to the fields early in the morning were shocked to find the limp body of the animal hanging from the top of the electric pole. They immediately alerted the local forest officials, who then brought the body down before sending it to the Nizamabad veterinary hospital for an autopsy. The post mortem report stated that the feline died from electrocution.
Speaking to HT, Nizamabad divisional forest officer VSLV Prasad said it was surprising how the animal managed to get to the top of the pole as there were no trees around.
“Leopards are capable of climbing up the long trees, and so, this leopard also might have climbed the pole like any other tree,” he said, adding that once atop, the leopard likely came in contact with high tension wires, resulting in its electrocution.
“It appears the leopard entered the area from the neighbouring forest which is just half a kilometre away.”
Prasad said leopards normally enter villages from surrounding forest areas in search of prey like cattle and sheep. However, there were no complaints about wild cats entering the village in the recent past.
The initial suspicion was that the animal’s death may have been caused by poachers, but forest officials later ruled it out.
“It was five-year-old male leopard weighing nearly 80 kgs. It is virtually impossible for poachers to dump the body on the top of a 12-ft electric pole. Moreover, the poachers generally dump the body of the wild animals after skinning it and removing its nails and teeth. But here, nothing of that sort happened,” Prasad said.
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