Panaji: A black panther was temporarily relocated to a state-run zoo for observation after being rescued from a Goa village, according to a forest department official on Sunday.

After spotting the animal entering a village, the forest authorities prepared a trap and on Saturday captured it in Balli village in the South Goa district. The Black Panther was then taken to the Bondla Zoo in North Goa to keep it under observation.

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How did the Panther enter the area

“The animal has minor injuries and is being treated. The feline will not be displayed to the public. When the animal is fit, it would be released into a deep forest in Goa,” the official said.

The forest agency is also looking into what caused the panther to leave its natural environment and wander into a populated area.

“We will be studying the animal’s food intake to understand why it came into the human settlement,” the official said.

A trapping mechanism had been put up at Balli hamlet in Quepem (South Goa), according to a tweet from Goa Forest Minister Vishwajit Rane, and the animal had been retrieved in the early hours of Saturday. The animal would be released in a wildlife refuge once the required treatments are finished, he had stated.