A female elephant was found dead in a reserve forest within the Sirumugai forest range, in Coimbatore district on Thursday.
Forest Department officials said the field staff found the carcass while patrolling the Mothur Pethikuttai reserve forest, on Thursday around 5 p.m. The animal’s genitals were found swollen. An autopsy was conducted on Friday.
Blood loss
Forest veterinary officer A. Sukumar, who performed the autopsy, said the 23-year-old elephant suffered severe blood loss, which led to anaemia and caused its death. No external injuries were found on the carcass. The intestines were empty and its internal organs devoid of blood, he added. “We initially thought the elephant died due to pregnancy complications, but it was not pregnant,” Mr. Sukumar said.
This is the second elephant death in the Coimbatore forest division this year. After the autopsy, the carcass was left in the wild for scavengers, said officials.
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