POKHARA, April 5 :Another leopard was found dead on Friday in Kaski following the death of five of them in the district within two weeks. The District Forest Office (DFO) confirmed that a male leopard of around two years was found dead at Suikhet Khola, Hemja. Madhav Prasad Baral, assistant district forest officer, said six leopards were found dead within twos weeks, including the one on Friday. The dead leopards included an adult male, an adult female and four cubs. He further said, “We have yet to ascertain the cause of the deaths. We´re shocked at the continuous leopard deaths.” According to the DFO, nine leopards have been found dead in different part of the district so far this year. The dead leopards included seven adults including three females, and two cubs, and they ranged in age from four months to nine years. Apart from the nine dead leopards, seven others were found injured and unconscious. These were treated and released again in the wild. “The leopard deaths have surprised us. The dead leopards were mainly found in the Bhalam and Kahu areas. The population of leopards in the district is around 200 and if the rate of deaths keeps up, this endangered animal is likely to become extinct in the next few years.” Baral said. The post-mortems showed the presence of poison in the bodies, but the type of poison has yet to be ascertained, Baral said. More tests needed to be carried out. The poison had spread throughout the leopard carcases and death was definitely due to the poison, not any illness, said Ganesh KC, veterinary doctor at the livestock services office, who carried out the post mortems. He added that the livers were swollen and there were other signs of poisoning. DFO officials suspect that somebody poisoned the leopards´ kill before they came for a second feed. A special team has been formed to probe who might have deliberately poisoned the kill, according to Baral at the DFO. The frequent death of leopards worries conservationists. Kamal Jung Kunwar, warden at Chitwan National Park, said such deaths will adversely affect the ecosystem and the extinction of this species will destroy the forests. Another conservationist, Raju Acharya, attributed the leopard deaths to lack awareness among people that these animals must not be killed and those killing them face two years in jail and a Rs 10,000 fine. He added, “This is the breeding season for leopards and they require more food. They generally go outside their habitat when they cannot find prey inside the jungle. (Source : Republica)