Following the rescue and reuniting of three leopard cubs with their mother in Umbraj village in Maharashtra recently, a lone lost cub was found in Rajuri village in Junnar division’s Otur forest range. Spotted by the villagers who were busy harvesting their sugarcane field, the matter was immediately reported to the Forest Department.

A team of forest department officials along with the Wildlife SOS team from Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre reached the spot.

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Range Forest Officer, Otur, VM Kakde observed: “The cutting of sugarcane fields takes place during this season and it is here that we find numerous leopard cubs. Such incidents are quite common for villagers residing near the scrub forests of Maharashtra, which is the natural habitat of a large population of leopards.”

Dr. Nikhil Bangar the Wildlife SOS veterinary doctor examined the cub to check its fitness and ascertain its age and gender. The cub was a female and approximately three months old.

The rescue team wanting to reunite the cub with the mother, returned to the field where she was found. Camera traps were installed in the field and subsequently the mother came back to rescue the cub within an hour’s time. Having found her cub safe and sound, the mother leopard picked her up and moved to a safer location.

Talking about the incident, Bangar said: “Time is of essence in these situations as the longer the separation between cubs and mother, the harder it is to reunite them. We are thankful to the villagers and the Maharashtra Forest Department who acted quickly and contacted Wildlife SOS.”

Emphasising on the integral role of the mother in teaching the cubs to hunt and survive, Kartick Satyanarayan, Co-founder and CEO of Wildlife SOS, said: “Thus, leopard cub reunions with their mothers are integral to ensure that they can continue thriving in the wild.”

Also read: 3 leopard cubs found in sugarcane field near Pune reunited with mother