Black panthers are also found in other states like Kerala, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
BHUBANESWAR: A black panther has been seen in Sundergarh forest in Odisha for the first time, the Forest Department said.
According to the Chief Conservator of Forest, Wild Life, HK Bist, the black panther or melanistic leopard as it is called, was captured on camera while roaming in the forest.
The camera trap was installed at the Garjanpahad Reserve Forest under Hemgir in Sundargarh Forest Division, and the footage was captured a week ago, Odisha's Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) Wildlife Sandeep Tripathi said.
Odisha is the ninth state where a black panther has been reported, Mr Bist said.
Melanistic leopards or black panthers are also found in other states like Kerala, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
Twenty years ago, black panthers were reportedly spotted in Phulbani and Simlipal forests of the state, but there was no evidence in the absence of camera traps then.
They were installed in the forest in 2015 following information about the animal by locals and forest dwellers to the forest department, the officer said.