More cages to trap leopards from villages in Tumakuru taluk for leopard translocation
Bengaluru : As many as 50 plus villages in Tumakuru district fall under leopard-man conflict areas in a list prepared by forest officials and the presence of leopards close to villages has often led to attacks on humans and cattle killed by leopards taking shelter outside forest boundaries. The leopard-man conflict villages are spread particularly in Turuvekere, Tiptur, Chikkanayakanahalli, Kunigal and Tumakuru taluks.
On December 21, a woman identified as Sujatha-wife of Byregowda, a resident of Aremallenahalli of Turuvekere taluk came under attack from a leopard when the woman was engaged in grazing her cattle. Prior to a leopard mauling a woman in Turuvekere, several incidents of leopard attacks on humans were reported in various parts of the district last year.
Over human-leopard conflicts in Tumakuru, Deputy Conservator of Forests, Tumakuru Shashidhar told Deccan Chronicle on Thursday the geographical features such as gomalas, hillocks, patches of forests including scrub, provide a conducive habitat for leopards to thrive.
Besides, Tumakuru forest division supports about 129,000 hectares having significant dry deciduous and thorny scrub forests supporting a healthy herbivore population of Spotted Deer, Blackbucks, Chinkaras among others for leopards to prey upon in forests.
To help the leopard population to thrive, the DCF said “Leopards are highly adaptable creatures and prey on rabbits, stray dogs and deer to fill their appetite. Just about 3 kilograms at of meat is enough to satiate their appetite.”
A wildlife conservationist pointed to leopards living too close to humans in and around villages where the population density is less such as about 300 in a village and leopards.
As a conflict mitigative measure, Minister of Forests and Environment Eshwar Khandre stated 31 new cages will be procured to trap leopards straying into villages. Forest officials said two leopards were trapped in a cage and were shifted to Bannerghatta Zoological Park in Bengaluru while in some cases trapped leopards are released back into the wild after consultations with senior forest officials.
Adding the official said, If a trapped leopard is to be released in the wild, officials in Tumakuru forest division said, such leopards will be released in forest areas and not in a close by location where it was trapped. “Some trapped leopards were released in Bandipur Tiger Reserve or Nagarahole Tiger Reserve,” he said.
