Leopard caught on camera in Bandarban forest for first time in 10 years

TNC Desk

Published: June 26, 2025, 01:32 PM

Leopard caught on camera in Bandarban forest for first time in 10 years

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A leopard has been captured on camera in Bandarban’s Sangu-Matamuhuri Reserve Forest, marking the first confirmed sighting in the region in nearly a decade. The rare photo evidence was obtained through a camera trap installed by the wildlife conservation group Creative Conservation Alliance (CCA), as part of an ongoing study on bear populations in the Chattogram Hill Tracts.

“This is the first confirmed leopard sighting in this forest since 2015,” said Saurav Chakma, a researcher with CCA. “While Royal Bengal Tigers may no longer be present in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, this finding confirms that leopards still inhabit the area.”

The discovery offers renewed hope for the survival of big cats in southeastern Bangladesh, where tiger sightings have become increasingly rare. CCA has been operating year-round camera trap monitoring to study wildlife in the region, and the unexpected appearance of a leopard provides crucial data on biodiversity in these remote forests.

Earlier this year in March, a man was seriously injured in a remote area of Rangamati’s Jurachhari upazila after being attacked by a large animal initially suspected to be a tiger. However, wildlife experts later speculated the animal was likely a leopard, based on regional presence and behavioral patterns.

Tiger specialist Professor Monirul H Khan of Jahangirnagar University noted that while tigers may still exist near the Kasalong Reserve Forest in Rangamati, the chances of their presence elsewhere in the hill tracts are minimal. “Given the evidence, it‍‍`s far more likely the animal was a leopard,” he said.

Supriyo Chakma, assistant professor at Rangamati Science and Technology University and contributor to the Sundarbans tiger census, also suggested the animal could have been an Indian leopard, a species known to inhabit the region.

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