The Forest Department is investigating the sudden death of a 40-year-old captive elephant at the Abharanyam elephant camp in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) on Wednesday (May 20) morning.

The elephant, identified as Cheran, is said to have suddenly collapsed on Wednesday, leading forest department officials to launch an investigation into the cause of death. A team of forest department staff, along with veterinarians from the forest department as well as department of animal husbandry’s Animal Disease Intelligence Unit reached the camp and were present at the time of postmortem of the animal.

Speaking to The Hindu, M.G. Ganesan, Deputy Director of the MTR, said samples of the animal’s visceral organs have been collected for further analysis. He said it was unlikely that Cheran died of any communicable diseases as the other elephants at the camp have shown no signs of illness.

“Cheran has also been involved in fights in the past with other elephants at the camp. During the post-mortem examination, we recognised that his internal organs had been affected, and it is possible he had been ailing for some time,” said Mr. Ganesan, adding that tests would be conducted to rule out any viral or bacterial infection causing the elephant’s death.