Leopards dispersing south of Junnar, expanding territory

Leopards from source areas such as Junnar, Khed, Shirur, and Ambegaon tehsils now appear to be dispersing towards the southern and southeastern parts of Junnar, entering new territories and leading to a rise in human-leopard conflicts, said forest officials noting that attacks by big cats are on the rise.

- Gayatri Vajpeyee

PUNE: Recent incidents reported from Shirur, Daund, Lohegaon, and even Solapur district have once again underlined the shift.

Officials said there is now hardly any entry point left in Pune district where leopard presence has not been recorded in recent years.

In the last two weeks alone, three serious conflict incidents involving the big cat have been reported in Pune district. An 82-year-old woman was killed in Shirur tehsil on April 25. Just five days later, on April 30, an 11-month-old baby was allegedly killed in a leopard attack in Daund. Around the same time, a leopard was spotted inside the airport premises in Lohegaon.