A barking deer (Muntiacus muntjak) that strayed out of the reserve forest area in Bairi in Jajpur district, apparently in search of water, was chased and killed by some villagers at Baranga on Thursday, said Bairi Forest Range officer Dilip Kumar Singh.
A team of forest officials came to the village and took the deer’s carcass to the forest office. A barking deer is a very sensitive animal and easily frightened, Singh said. “We are trying to arrest all those who killed the animal,” he added.
Most of the artificial reservoirs and ponds in the reserve forest area have dried up and many animals are moving out in search of water. Some steps have been taken to replenish the water bodies, but many animals are still thirsty, said sectary of the district unit of the People for Animals Sudhanshu Parida.