Ballari: A
leopardess was killed after being hit by an unknown vehicle while it was crossing
National Highway-13 at Potalakatta Cross near Thimmalapura village at Mariyammanahalli of
Hosapete taluk.
After seeing the two-year-old big cat dead in the wee hours on Friday, passersby informed police and
forest department officials. The officials brought the body to Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Services Hospital at Mariyammanahalli to ascertain the cause of its death. Hospital chief Dr S M H Akthar confirmed the animal was killed in a road accident. "Its skull is fully broken, while the neck, nerves and bones are dislocated. An autopsy has been done as per the
Wildlife Act. It has been submitted to the forest officers," he said.
Assistant conservator of forests S Praveen said: "The leopardess may have come out of the reserve forest in search of food and water. But it died after being hit by a vehicle. The impact of the collision was big and it died on the spot."
Wildlife activist V Madhu Shankar said officers should do night combing to protect animals. "The onus is on the forest department to devise a plan to protect the wildlife," he added.
The leopardess was hit by an unknown vehicle while it was crossing NH-13
