Blackbuck found dead in Greater Noida

A male blackbuck was found dead under mysterious circumstances in Gautam Buddh Nagar's Greater Noida Sunday, Forest department officials said.

The carcass of the blackbuck, which finds a place in the International Union for Conservation of Nature's list of threatened species, was found in the agricultural fields in the Rabupura area in the morning, they added.

"It may have died after getting entangled in the metal wires set up by farmers in their fields to keep off Nilgais (an Antelope species), but we are awaiting the autopsy report for a confirmation of the cause of the death," Divisional Forest Officer P K Shrivastava said.

He added that the Forest department would be probing the role of humans in the incidents involving blackbucks, which were present in "huge numbers" in the area.

"A special squad has been formed under a range officer to ascertain if the locals or outsiders are targeting the species," Shrivastava said.