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Leopard Spotted Roaming In Whitefield; Is Bengaluru The New Hotspot For Leopard Sightings? 

by Sanjana Shenoy
Leopard Spotted Roaming In Whitefield; Is Bengaluru The New Hotspot For Leopard Sightings? 

The last place you’d ever expect to find a leopard is right in the centre of a busy road in a metropolitan city. However, this shouldn’t illicit much surprise as forest encroachment and urbanisation have left the wild with no choice but to become unexpected visitors in cities. Recently, residents spotted a leopard roaming around in Whitefield, the tech hub of Bengaluru. This is one of the many incidents when the elusive animal graced its presence in the urban centre of Namma Bengaluru.

Leopard Caught Roaming Around The Streets Of Whitefield In Bengaluru

According to a report by The New Indian Express, a post shared by the page Whitefield Rising on X (formerly Twitter) revealed that a leopard was spotted roaming in Whitefield in the Brookfield area. Later it mentioned a statement hoping the leopard was safely captured.

Netizens were quick to jump on the bandwagon and shower the comments section with cheeky remarks. @ShruteshJathan comments, “He probably took the Purple line and got off at Kadugodi”. For this @WhitefieldRising remarked that the leopard was probably waiting for the metro as well. @TigeRamesh mentions, “It will run away after seeing the pathetic condition of Whitefield roads and traffic.”

@kudachid1 comments, “This was not sighted in brokefield aecs layout as reported wrongly by media it is sighted in kudlu singasandra aecs layout A block”. @ashishdhagat jokes, “Wfh over for leopard. Hence back to business”.

Not The First Time Big Cats Spotted In The Tech City

Meanwhile, this isn’t the first time a leopard was spotted in the middle of a road in Bangalore. @InsightGL took to X to share a video of a leopard climbing down a coconut tree. Apparently, people spotted this elusive animal behind the X user’s friend’s home in the Silicon Valley of India. 

In 2020, when India and the world faced COVID-19-induced lockdowns, @DrBellyButton shared a picture of a gorgeous leopard basking in the sun on the Hyderabad-Bangalore highway. Looks like it enjoyed the empty roads, devoid of traffic. 

Also Read: 6 Best Places For Leopard Safaris In India

A few months ago, in April this year, @amosrv2official spotted an elusive big cat on the Bangalore National Highway. It seemed to have strayed from the Bannerghatta National Park. Residents alerted the forest department officials in the nick of time. And they caught the animal safely relocated it. 

Back in 2016, @path2shah shared a picture of a dog placed in a cage to lure a leopard which was roaming the streets of Whitefield. 

So, why is it common to witness leopards in Bangalore? As per a report by The Hindu, the elusive creatures have always existed in the outskirts of the city. The dry deciduous forests and rocky outcrops are fair reasons why leopards have comfortably lived there. However, due to the expansion of Bengaluru, the government converted leopard habitats into human dwellings. The advent of highways and industrial hubs has slowly stolen the homes of leopards, leaving them with no choice but to stroll in the city.

Also Read: Watch: Leopard Walks Into Mumbai’s Film City &Kills Dog; Camera Traps Installed To Catch It

Bengalureans, have you ever witnessed a leopard bang in the middle of Namma Bengaluru? If you did, do let us know how did that make you feel?

Cover Image Courtesy: @DrBellyButton/ X

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