A leopard entered a village in Anamalai in the district and taken away a calf in the wee hours of today, triggering panic among the villagers.
Ponnusamy, a farmer, is rearing three cows, with a calf in his house and the family had gone to sleep after giving fodder to the animals last night, police said.
Hearing the noise in backyard, where cows were tied, Ponnusamy went and noticed that a leopard was eating the calf. Seeing the torch light, leopard ran towards a bushy area in Themmampathi village.
However, the animal returned and took away the remainings of the calf, when the farmer went inside the house to wake up other family members, police said.
On a complaint, forest department officials arrived at the scene and inspected the area and also the calf's carcass, they said.
Anticipating the return of leopard, a camera has been installed to watch the movement and also to ascertain whether it was a leopard or tiger, since Ponnusamy could not clearly see the animal in the darkness, police said.
