An injured tigress in Uttar Pradesh’s Dudhwa National Park died on Tuesday, August 11, after being without food for nearly 10 days, with a nylon wire trap entangled around her neck.

Officials who spotted the animal’s body discovered that it had maggots on its neck. The body was sent for post-mortem the same day.

The autopsy report that came the next day revealed that at the time of her death, her stomach was empty, a faecal sample was hard and her body dehydrated.

‘There were maggots in the wounds from the wire that cut into her neck. She had not eaten or had any water because of the wires,’ The Times Of India quoted Anil Patel, deputy director of the buffer areas of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, as saying.

How the tiger fell into the wire trap is yet to be ascertained. However, as per forest officials, people living on the edges of the forest areas usually set nylon wire traps for wild boars, in an attempt to carry out the illegal killing.

‘She seems to have freed herself of the trap but couldn’t get rid of the rope tied tightly around her neck. She wandered off to a village under the Jatpura beat of Dudhwa Tiger Reserve’s Mailani forest range. The tigress was standing close to a villager who was busy cutting grass. Another farmer spotted her and was alarmed. But she could only make it a few steps ahead before she collapsed,’ Patel said.

Also Read: Tiger Corridors Require Immediate Attention For Sustaining Conservation Of Animals: Govt Report