A lioness and a leopard cub were found dead inside a well in Hathasani village of Amreli district on Monday with forest officers saying the two carnivores fell inside during a fight. In another incident, a "sub-adult lion", injured after being hit by a goods train in Uchaiya village of Amreli on Friday, has succumbed to his injuries, forest officers said. Carcasses of a lioness and a leopard cub were found floating in the well on an agricultural farm belonging to a farmer, Ashwin Shingala, in Hathasani village of Savarkundla taluka of Amreli on Monday morning. “The open well is not in use. However, the farmer noticed a foul smell emanating from the well on Monday morning, and upon inspection, he found the two carnivore’s carcasses floating in it,” Rajdeepsinh Zala, Deputy Conservator of Forests of Gir (east) Wildlife Division, told The Indian Express. The village falls in the revenue area of the Savarkundla range of Gir (east) wildlife division. Zala said the leopard cub was around three months old while the lioness was an adult, around seven years old. “Prima facie, it appears that the lioness and the cub fell in the well during a flight. There were injury marks on the cub’s carcass, suggesting it was attacked. On the other hand, we also found that the lioness’ nails had scratches, suggesting the lioness was alive when she fell in the well and that it scratched its nails while trying to climb out of the well unsuccessfully and eventually died due to drowning,” Zala added. Asiatic lions are an endangered species whose only population in the world is surviving in the Gir Forest and other protected areas in Junagadh, Amreli, Gir Somnath, and Bhavnagar districts in Gujarat’s Saurashtra region. While the Gir Forest spread across Junagadh, Amreli and Gir Somnath districts are the core habitat of Asiatic lions, a number of carnivores have also settled in revenue areas. The DCF said that open wells on agricultural fields are posing a threat to the safety of lions. “So far, 12,200 wells have been secured by constructing parapets around them in Gir (east) division. In the Savarkundla range, 3,401 wells have been secured. In the village where the incident happened, two wells have been secured. Additionally, of the 90 wells secured in the current year, 71 are in the Savarkundla range,” Zala said. The state's Forest Department provides financial assistance of Rs 14,400 to farmers per well to construct a perimeter wall in lion landscape while considering Rs 16,000 as the unit cost of such a work. Meanwhile, a sub-adult lion - injured after being hit by a goods train near Uchaiya village in neighbouring Rajula taluka of Amreli on Friday - succumbed to his injuries. “The lion was shifted to Sakkaraug Zoo in Junagadh for treatment. However, he succumbed to his injuries on Saturday and we have received a report in this respect from Sakkarbagu Zoo,” Jayan Patel, DCF of Shetrunji Wildlife Division, said on Monday. A goods train originating from Pipava port near Rajula had hit two sub-adult male lions near Uchaiya village in the Rajula range of Shetrunji Wildlife Division in the early hours of Friday. While one lion was killed on the spot, the other was injured seriously and was taken to Sakkarbagu Zoo in Junagadh city for treatment.
