Forest dept. intensifies efforts to track down leopard in Chennimalai

With a leopard continuing to prey on cattle in villages near the Chennimalai forest area, the Tamil Nadu Forest department has set up cages to capture the animal.

With a leopard continuing to prey on cattle in villages near the Chennimalai forest area, the Tamil Nadu Forest department has set up cages to capture the animal. Additionally, drone surveillance has been heightened, and residents have been advised to keep their cattle safe.

In separate incidents over the past two weeks, two goats were killed by an unidentified animal on farmlands in the Pudupalayam area. Postmortem examinations of the carcasses confirmed that a carnivore was responsible for the attacks. Following this, the Erode Forest Division intensified surveillance and urged farmers to relocate goat sheds situated on patta lands adjacent to the forest.

Erode District Forest Officer (DFO) K.V. Appala Naidu told The Hindu that efforts were currently underway to track the leopard and assess its condition — whether it was young or aged, healthy or injured, or accompanied by cubs. Based on these findings, further decisions will be made, Mr. Naidu said.

As a precaution, cages have been placed on farmlands in the area, he said. The DFO said there had been no direct sighting of the leopard so far. However, drone surveillance and camera traps are being used to track its movements. Additionally, awareness campaigns are being conducted in villages bordering the forest, advising residents to keep their cattle in secure enclosures and avoid tethering them in open areas near the forest boundary, he added.

Officials suspect the leopard may be a non-resident animal. The Chennimalai Reserve Forest, which extends into Kangeyam taluk in Tiruppur district, includes the hilly terrains of Arachalur Nagamalai and Vijayamangalam Arasannamalai, and these hills serve as a corridor for various wildlife species, including tigers, leopards, and deer.