Tiger Mahavir Died Of Multiple Organ Failure, Says Post-Mortem Report

The three-year-old male Royal Bengal Tiger, Mahavir, which was translocated from Madhya Pradesh to the Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in Odisha's Angul district, died due to infection and multiple organ failure, official sources said Monday.

"The ante-mortem wound in the neck region was infested with maggots and the subsequent infection had led to septicaemia, resulting in multiple organ failure," the post-mortem report released by the forest department said.

The big cat, which was translocated from the Kanha Tiger Reserve of Madhya Pradesh, was found dead in the Satkosia Tiger Reserve (STR) on November 14.

The post-mortem report also mentioned that a provisional diagnosis indicated that the tiger had died due to multiple vital organ failure, which was initiated since the creation of the wound in the neck region.

The forest department has also collected specimens from the tiger's liver, kidney, lungs, spleen, intestine and stomach for laboratory tests.

Regional Chief Conservator of Forest (RCCF) Sudarshan Kumar Panda said around eight to ten porcupine quills were recovered from the stomach of the tiger during post-mortem. He added that apart from porcupine quills, furs of wild boar were also found in tiger's stool.

"As per the post-mortem report, the tiger died because of organ failure due to the wound on his neck. Around eight to ten porcupine quills were recovered from the tiger's stomach along with traces of wild boar hair from stool samples," Panda said.

"Some of his tissues and organs have been sent for further examination once the reports come, a final report to ascertain the exact cause behind the death can be prepared," he added.

However, under what circumstances the tiger had suffered the injuries would be investigated, Panda said.

Asked about another tigress, Sundari, which is rumoured to be unwell and is kept in an enclosure in Satkosia, he said the animal was doing fine.

Sundari was moving inside the enclosure, Panda said, adding that further decisions on the tigress would be taken after discussing the matter with the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA), the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), the Centre and the state government.

"The NTCA team had also observed that the tigress in the enclosure was in good health," Sandeep Tripathy, Odisha's Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, told reporters, adding that the forest department had released a video of the tigress, where it was seen in good health.

According to a statement of the Satkosia Tiger Reserve, on November 14 at 1 pm, tiger monitoring team reported about the mortality of the male tiger. The incident occurred 500 meters from Raigoda to Nuagada forest road inside the Nuagarh reserve forest of Athagarh forest division which has been proposed to be included in SatkosiaTiger Reserve, the statement added.

The statement further stated that on Prima facie investigation of the carcass, "a deep lacerated and five-day-old maggotted infected wound was observed in the dorsal neck region of the tiger which may be the cause of the mortality".

PTI