It seems, the year 2025 has not begun on a happy note for wildlife lovers and conservationists. In just six days of this year, while three tigers and one leopard at a Nagpur rescue centre in Maharashtra succumbed to avian influenza, the same number of striped predators were found dead in the wild in separate incidents, albeit due to different reasons like electrocution and suspected poaching.

According to the data available from the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) website, two wild big cats died in Maharashtra and one in Madhya Pradesh’s Pench Tiger Reserve. Two deaths were outside the protected areas (PAs).

The first death of the year from the wild was reported when a male adult tiger was found dead in Maharashtra’s Bramhapuri Forest Division.  Another mortality was reported on January 5th when a tigress body was found by the wildlife department in Seoni division in Pench Tiger Reserve.

The following day i.e. on January 6, yet another tigress was discovered dead with burn marks noticed on the body, suggesting attempted burning. Officials suspect electrocution , leading to one person's detention for questioning. This marks the second tiger death recently in Tumsar, with investigations ongoing.

However, in encouraging news, last year witnessed a significant drop in tiger fatalities nationwide, underscoring the effectiveness of ongoing conservation efforts for these majestic animals.

Overall, 127 tigers died in the wild in 2024 which was less when compared to previous year when 182 mortalities were reported. In Maharashtra 22 tigers died in 2024, which was less than half as compared to 2023. The last tiger death was reported on December 30 from a village in Devanara Village in Maharashtra.