A five-year-old male leopard was run over and killed by an unidentified vehicle on the Kozhikode-Mysore National Highway 212 inside the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary (WWS) at Muthanga on the Kerala-Karnataka border on Saturday night. Passers-by who found the leopard dead on the road around 8 p.m. informed the Forest Department.
Assistant Wildlife Warden K.R. Krishnadas said the leopard died of internal injuries. The animal could have been hit by a four-wheeler while it was crossing the road, he added. V.I. Jigimon, veterinary surgeon, and Arun Zachariah, Assistant Professor, Centre for Wildlife Studies, Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Pookode, did the autopsy. The skull and the neck of the leopard were damaged in the accident leading to its instant death, Dr. Jigimon said. A male spotted deer was killed in another road accident on the NH-212 at Arupathinalu near Moolamkavu under the WWS on Sunday morning. A wild boar and a spotted deer were killed in similar accidents a few weeks ago in the vicinity.
There are not many speed-breakers and signboards on both sides of NH 212 which passes through the sanctuary.
