Leopard terror: Cow mauled, cattle injured; forest official set up camera traps

Vizianagaram: Fear has gripped S Kota Mandal after a wild animal suspected to be a leopard or tiger killed a cow and injured other cattle near Aitanapalem village on Saturday. The animal has been giving sleepless nights to the villagers and the forest department officials in S Kota Mandal.

Locals said that a big cat killed the cow of P Srinu on Saturday and injured another cattle. It may be recalled that a suspected leopard killed two sheep on the outskirts of Krishnapuram village in S Kota Mandal in April this year. Forest department officials swung into action and collected the pug marks on Sunday. They have set up cameras at Boddavara, Jeelugupadu, Dasarithota, and Chilakalagedda to trace the animal. The pugmarks could mostly be of a leopard, but there is no direct evidence. Officials have alerted the villagers, they added.

The pugmarks seemed to be that of a big leopard or a small tiger. It might have moved in from Vizag or Odisha forests to Vizianagaram district. "We are observing the movements of the animal. Earlier, we arranged eight cameras in Birasadavalasa village in Mentada Mandal in Vizianagaram district to locate the suspected tiger/leopard. However, we did not get any tiger/leopard movements so far", forest officials added.