Decomposed carcass of leopard found in sugarcane field in Maharashtra's Beed

Beed, May 2 (PTI) A leopard was found dead in a sugarcane field in Ashti taluka of Maharashtra's Beed district, officials said on Saturday.
The highly decomposed carcass of the leopard, believed to be around 12 years old, was found on Friday in Limbodi village, they said.
The animal is suspected to have died six to eight days prior to the discovery of the carcass.
Forest Range Officer Amol Munde and a veterinary team reached the site after receiving information. However, the advanced state of decomposition made it impossible to conduct a post-mortem examination, the officials said.
No samples were collected for laboratory testing, due to which the exact cause of the death could not be determined.
The forest authorities said the leopard's teeth, claws and other body parts were intact, which ruled out the possibility of poaching.
They said the feline might have died due to old age or extreme heat.
Following completion of the official panchnama, last rites were conducted late at night in the presence of forest and veterinary officials.
"Since the body was completely decomposed, a post-mortem examination could not be carried out. The exact cause of death cannot be determined," veterinary officer Dr Santosh Dhonde said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)