“That’s a snare”, whispered Dr Daksh to me, sitting on a JCB (earthmover) that was brought in to clear out the trees and bushes to get a more unobstructed view of the leopard. Two days back we were summoned by Uttar Pradesh Forest Department to investigate about a leopard that was being sighted at the same spot.

On the evening of 2nd January, I was enjoying my leisure time at our field station in Pilibhit with Dr Daksh, another fellow veterinarian and Mr Om Prakash Mishra, project sociologist, when we received information on a leopard continuously being sighted by the villagers in Chandauli district of Varanasi. Because the leopard was not observed moving much, the local forest officials presumed that it might be suffering from some grave illness. Without mulling much over this, we left immediately for Varanasi. We operate a Rapid Response Team in the Dudhwa-Pilibhit landscape, with support from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Reaching Varanasi on the morning of 3rd January, through a hectic night drive of approximately 500 km, pulling an all-nighter in the car, we quickly freshened up and immediately left for Dhauthawa village – where the leopard had been spotted.

At the spot, we could see a leopard sitting under a tree and a trap cage placed in front of it. A massive crowd of onlookers had also amassed at the spot – to catch a glimpse of the leopard. Our sociologist immediately got down to work and first thing cleared out the crowd. He then created a perimeter that we could work in without being hassled by people which also helped in avoiding any untoward incidents with the leopard on the loose.

The leopard had been apparently in the same spot for the last four days and owing to it being obscured by bushes, the local forest department staff were not sure as to why the leopard had not left the spot. It was hidden at a place that anyone would find it hard to figure why a predator would decide to be in one spot. Something must be very wrong!

Picture 1: The leopard sighted at the location of capture.

Our team immediately called for an earthmover or JCB, as it is commonly called, to clear the nearby trees and bushes to get a clear view of the leopard. Once we got over with this, both Dr Daksha and I sat on the JCB to get a peek at the leopard safely. Once the view was clear, we were shocked to see that the leopard was trapped in a snare, which was lodged on its abdomen. It was now clear that the leopard needed to be captured and immobilized, not just to get the snare out but also examine the intensity of the injuries. We conveyed the same to the concerned senior forest department officials and requested their approval to go ahead with the operation.

Picture 2: Leopard trapped in snare, lodged on the abdominal region.

However, as luck would have it, apprehension of proceeding with a chemical capture operation lingered strongly in the air. No one was sure what effect drugs would have on an already weak and possibly severely injured leopard. It was thus decided that attempts would be made to restrain it physically and remove the snare. Although from our perspective of veterinary science chemical capture would have been an easier and stress-free approach and would have also helped in treating the wounds caused by the snare, we could not proceed on this trajectory without the consent of all on the team. Hence, an operation to physically restrain the animal and remove the snare, instead, was strategized.

No matter how incapacitated, a wild animal in desperation to escape its human adversaries will put up a formidable fight, which this leopard also did. But braving the odds, the leopard was finally physically restrained with the help of nets, bamboo poles and several personnel from the forest department. We then cut open the snare, and what we saw was an intense and long incised wound around the abdomen with clearly exposed viscera (the internal organs). In simpler words, the snare had slowly tightened its deadly grip and had gradually over four days cut open the abdomen of the leopard. Realizing the gravity of the situation, the leopard was quickly shifted into a transportation crate rushed to the nearest zoo for treatment. We had little hope for this leopard and were quite sure it would succumb to its grave injuries. It did – after fighting on for another day and night – at the Kanpur zoo.

While somewhere I did understand that this was a lost case, considering the damage that had already been done by the snare, in the corner of my mind, a jumble of thoughts lingered amidst a cloud of despair. Could the leopard have survived if we had chemically immobilized it, perhaps causing lesser stress? Scores of leopards die every day due to snares and jaw traps across India, why is nothing done to bring the use of such equipment to a halt? How many such deaths will it take for us to see, that too many leopards have died?

About the Author: Dr. Akhilesh works as a veterinary surgeon in WTI for Terai Tiger Project. He is adventurous and loves hiking. He is a pantheist with a passion for wildlife