News
30 leopard deaths in five years
At least 30 leopards have been found dead in the Central Province in the past five years, the province’s Assistant Wildlife Director D.M. Weerasinghe said.
He said their records from 2015 to April 2019 showed that the carcasses had been found in Haggala, Kandy, Maskeliya, Keerthibandarapura, Belihuloya, Horton Plains and Kotagala.
Of these five years, the worst year was 2015, with ten leopard deaths. Four leopards were found dead in 2016, six in 2017 and seven in 2018. Three leopards have been found dead up to April, 2019.
Post-mortem examinations of the carcasses have found that most of the leopards had been poisoned or killed by traps meant for wild boars.
The Wildlife official said one of the main reasons for leopards entering areas inhabited by humans was the forest fires deliberately set by hunters to force wild animals into the open. Another reason was the the clearing of the jungle areas by plantation companies to expand their tea cultivation.
“Due to these reasons, the leopards are losing their territory and are forced to enter inhabited areas looking for food and water. In these areas, they start hunting dogs, goats and other animals. Once the leopards settle in the areas, they don’t move from the new territory,” he explained.