The Gudalur Forest Department is investigating a suspected case of gaur poaching in the O-Valley range in Gudalur.
According to officials, information was received from the field staff that poachers have hunted gaur in the division for the last few months. District Forest Officer (Gudalur Division), Kommu Onkaram said that a team of forest staff from Gudalur and Mudumalai Tiger Reserves visited the area along with a sniffer dog and discovered bones and skin from the spot identified by the staff.
Shri Omkaram confirmed that some parts of the gaur have been found and collected. “We have sent the samples to the Molecular Biodiversity Lab at the Government Arts College in Udhagamandalam for analysis and confirmation,” he said. After the confirmation of the results, a case under the Wildlife Protection Act is expected to be registered.
The forest department is also probing whether there was any complicity of the local field staff, including guards and watchmen, in the gaur hunt. They are also checking whether the animals have been hunted elsewhere.