Even as incidents of mysterious killing of sheep are being reported from different districts, an unnamed wild animal was caught by villagers in the worst-affected Cuttack district's Niali area early on Sunday morning.
According to villagers, a pack of four furred nocturnal animals were sighted at Dihasithala village in the morning. While one of them, a younger one, was caught by villagers, the rest three managed to escape. Forest officials reached the spot and identified that the animal is of a wolf breed. "We will send its fur to the Wildlife Institute for its accurate identification," said an official of the Similipal Wildlife Sanctuary.
Moreover, an unknown animal too killed two more sheep and injured another at Sudhanagar village under Niali block late on Saturday night. Besides, one sheep was missing from its shed.
Such an incident also occurred in the Bhanjanagar area in Ganjam district with as many as 12 sheep reportedly killed by unknown animals at Badapathar village in the wee hours on Sunday. According to reports, the blood-sucking animal attacked the sheep, made punctures on their necks and ate livers by tearing stomachs.
It may be noted that such incidents have also been reported in Kalahandi, Jagatisinghpur and Kendrapada districts.