What happened?
On February 16th, a common leopard that is a critically endangered species in Pakistan was found dead in Haripur’s Margalla Hills near Khanpur confirmed the Islamabad Wildlife Management Board. An autopsy report by Civil Veterinary Hospital Khanpur suggests that the death may have occurred due to sudden cardiac arrest or some other natural cause.
What you should know
“There were no apparent clinical signs/marks revealing the suspected attempt for unusual death,” it read. After the news was reported, several contacted the Islamabad wildlife board to confirm if the dead leopard was Shezadi, a big cat that was spotted between trails 4 and 6 of the Margalla Hills National Park in January. The board had shared her pictures on its social media account after she was spotted. “I can confirm that this leopard is not Shezadi,” an Islamabad wildlife officer told SAMAA Digital.
What else?
He said that he doesn’t have more details as the area the leopard was found in falls under the territory of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Forestry, Environment, and Wildlife Department. The KP department has, however, declined to comment on the matter which creates difficulties in tracking the presence of such an endangered species.