Leopard-like animal with two cubs reported at a Mirsarai village graveyard

A leopard-like wild animal seen near homes in Dakshin Bhuiyan village, in Ichhakhali union of Mirsarai upazila, Chattogram, caused alarm among villagers in July 2025. Reports by Jagonews24 and the Daily Janakantha on 16 July 2025 said the animal had been seen for several days around the village's old Eidgah graveyard. The Forest Department had not confirmed what species it was by that date.

Quoting local people, the reports said the animal roared and moved like a big cat and had two cubs with it. According to the Janakantha report, villagers said it looked much like a leopard or a fishing cat. No attack on people had been reported as of 16 July, but villagers said the animal had several times tried to attack cattle and goats.

Maulana Raihan Uddin, imam of the local mosque, told Jagonews24: "Two leopard cubs have been seen at the Eidgah graveyard in Dakshin Bhuiyan village. Local people have been told to be careful, and the area's prominent residents have been asked to take urgent steps." Residents asked the Forest Department to investigate and establish whether the animal was a leopard, a fishing cat or some other wild animal.

Md Abdul Gafur, the Mirsarai coastal range officer, told Jagonews24: "No one has informed us of this yet. Wild animals like these do not usually attack anyone unless they are provoked. So there is no need to panic." He told the Janakantha that a rescue operation would be carried out once the animal's exact location was confirmed.

Under Bangladesh's Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012, no one may hunt a wild animal without a licence or permit. Where a wild animal threatens human life or property, including domestic animals, the Act gives the Chief Warden and wardens the duty to remove or rehabilitate it. Section 37 sets a penalty of up to three years in prison, a fine of up to Tk 3 lakh, or both, for killing a leopard (চিতাবাঘ, rendered "cheetah" in the official English text). Anyone who sees such an animal should keep their distance, not chase, trap or hurt it, and inform the local Forest Department office.

The fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus), one of the animals villagers named, is a wild cat of South and Southeast Asia that lives in densely vegetated wetlands, swamps, oxbow lakes and mangrove forests. Fish make up about three-quarters of its diet, the rest being birds, small rodents and insects. It is found in most divisions of Bangladesh and has been listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List since 2016. Fishing cats are often killed by people who mistake them for tiger cubs or blame them for lost fish.

Mirsarai upazila covers 482.88 square kilometres, with the Feni River on one side, the Sandwip Channel of the Bay of Bengal to the south and Sitakunda upazila next to it. It has 16 unions, Ichhakhali among them, and a population of 472,794 at the 2022 census. Mahamaya Lake, a well-known reservoir of the Chattogram region, lies in the upazila.

Photo: Hasib / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources: Jagonews24, Daily Janakantha, Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act, 2012 (FAO FAOLEX), Wikipedia (Fishing cat, Mirsharai Upazila)