Maharashtra: Two tigers found dead in forests of Chandrapur district

Representational Pic/File

Two tigers were found dead in two days in the forests of Maharashtra's Chandrapur district, a forest official said on Monday, reported the PTI.

The carcass of a sub-adult tigress was found under the Saoli forest range of Chandrapur division on Monday morning, while a tiger died after falling into a well in Nagbhid tehsil on Sunday, the official said, as per the PTI.

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The tigress, aged around one and half years, was found dead on an encroached farmland in the reserve forest area, and the carcass was shifted to the transit treatment centre (TTC) for post-mortem, he said.

Veterinarians found maggots on the head wounds of the animal and petrified organs in the body, the official said, adding that the big cat might have died of external injuries.

A tiger was also found dead in a well on a farm in Nagbhid tehsil on Sunday morning, a senior forest official said, according to the PTI.

The big cat might have fallen into the well while chasing prey in the Govindpur beat of Talodhi (Ba) forest range under Bramhapuri forest division, he said.

Carcass found in Tadoba not Maya's

Meanwhile, while those concerned about the whereabouts of the famous tigress Maya await the results of the forensic and DNA reports of the bones discovered in Tadoba forest, highly placed sources in the forest department have confirmed to mid-day that the bones are not those of a tiger. This would prompt wildlife lovers to wonder whether the tigress is still alive. "The samples taken from the wild animal skeletons found at Tadoba in November were sent for analysis. We have been informed that the bones were not of a tiger but some other animals," said an official from the Maharashtra Forest Department.

According to an official from the Maharashtra Forest Department, the samples taken from the wild animal skeletons found at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) were sent for DNA analysis to the National Centre for Biological Sciences and the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology for further analysis. The analysis revealed that the bones were not of a tiger but of some other animal. "We are awaiting an official report from the National Centre for Biological Sciences and the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology regarding the same," he said.

(with PTI inputs)