A female tiger prowling villages in northern India has killed its 10th human in six weeks, and continues to evade hunters, forest officials said yesterday.
The big cat mauled a 50-year-old man as he was collecting firewood on Sunday night near the village of Kalgarh, close to the border between the states of Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh, Deputy Director Saket Badola of the Jim Corbett National Park said.
The animal ate parts of the man's leg and abdomen before being scared away by villagers waving shovels.
Meanwhile, hunters hired to kill the animal were having trouble tracking its pug marks in dense forests, according to Rupek De, chief wildlife warden of Uttar Pradesh.
Officials believe the tiger strayed into forests beyond Corbett, India's oldest national park, which was established in 1936 to provide endangered Bengal tigers with safe territory.
"The animal has started attacking humans because it is not getting its natural prey. The tigress must be tired because it is not getting adequate rest," De said.