The State Forest Department on Thursday confirmed the presence of a black tiger in the Garjan hill area under the Dhanu Baunsa Reserve Forest region in Sundargarh district.
The confirmation came days after Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF-Wildlife) Susanta Nanda asserted the presence of black leopards in various forests of Odisha.
As many as 25 trap cameras were installed in the reserve forests as part of the tiger census exercise in 2023. The last time a black leopard was sighted in the same reserve forest was in 2018.
The department said it has decided to focus on measures to ensure the safety of the spotted black leopard.
Sundargarh Assistant Conservator of Forest Sanjib Panda said, " Pictures of a black leopard were captured in one of the cameras.”
Further, the department has started an investigation to check if there are other tigers in the reserve forest.
Two days ago, PCCF Nanda had posted, "During the tiger counting, we got evidence of black leopards at three places. Besides, we have other evidence about the presence of black leopards in other places.”
