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Baripada: A Royal Bengal Tiger died of old age related ailments in the Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR), official sources said here on Saturday.
The carcass of the tiger, aged between 15 to 16 years, was spotted by the patrolling party of STR on Friday in Jadapala forests under Naana south range in the core area of Similipal, STR field director Anup Kumar Nayak said.
"Normally, life span of a Royal Bengal Tiger is 13 to 14 years. It had outlived the life span and we suspect the tiger died of old age related ailments," Nayak said.
The tiger is believed to have died two days ago.
Ruling out involvement of poachers in the death, the field director said the nails, skin and teeth were intact when the body was recovered.
Poachers generally kill the big cats and remove their body parts to fuel a lucrative business which relies on high demand in the international blackmarket.
Necessary procedure required for conservation of the tiger had been strictly adhered to in this case as well, he said, adding that a veterinary surgeon had conducted post-mortem on the carcass.
