Illegal snare trap kills tiger in Nilgiris, three arrested

Three individuals were arrested on Wednesday in connection with the death of a three-year-old male tiger; its carcass was found in Gudalur in Tamil Nadu’s Nilgiris district. The carcass was discovered with a snare tightly wound around its neck, a trap commonly used for hunting wild boars.
A team of forest officials, led by Gudalur Divisional Forest Officer N Venkatesh Prabhu, arrived at the scene to investigate the carcass. The snare was identified as an illegal trap made from clutch cables. The area near the trap, located in Thattakolli near the reserve forest boundary, was also littered with garbage and empty alcohol bottles, indicating illegal activities.
The tiger’s body was sent for an autopsy, and a thorough investigation was initiated. The probe led to the arrest of three suspects, Manikandan, Marimuthu, and Vedan, who are known for using snares to capture wild boars. During questioning, the suspects admitted to setting the trap to catch boars, which are drawn to the garbage. Tragically, the tiger, attracted by the scent of the boars, wandered into the area and became ensnared, leading to its death.
In response to the incident, forest officials have committed to increasing patrols in the region and deploying sniffer dogs to identify and remove snare traps, aiming to prevent such incidents in the future.