The Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve (BTR) in Umeria district lost a male cub on Friday, taking death toll of big cats in Madhya Pradesh to 16 in the last nine months, including two on Monday.
A “mahout” on a routine patrolling saw a leopard dragging the cub at around 9.30am near Damokhar range.
Officials said the cub was one of the three litters to tigress T43 and was mauled to death by the leopard.
Tiger reserves in the state would be open for tourists from Tuesday onwards and all safaris have been booked in advance and they have already lost three tigers in just five days. Two deaths were reported last week.
Thirty tiger deaths were reported from the state in 2016.
Earlier, a two-year-old tigress was found dead inside a well in BTR, Umaria district on Monday, another male cub was found in Pench National Park (PNP), Seoni district. BTR officials said the big cat aged about two drowned in the well near Magdi range. Insiders say officials had left the well open after village was relocated from that place.
Madhya Pradesh accounts for the highest number of tiger deaths in the country, and a shocking 29 of them were due to poaching in just three years.
