BETTIAH, Sept. 1 -- The increase in tiger population at Bihar's Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) appears to have triggered frequent territorial clashes, forest officials said. On Sunday, a tigress was found dead in the Raghiya forest range of VTR in West Champaran. Officials attributed the death to a territorial fight between two big cats. The carcass was recovered from compartment R/58. "Prima facie, the tigress seems to have died from injuries sustained in a fight with another tiger. Multiple injury marks were found on the body, and pugmarks of another big cat were spotted near the site," the forest department said in a statement. The tigress, estimated to be 5-6 years old, has been sent for postmortem. Viscera samples will be examined at the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Bareilly, and the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun, for forensic testing, said Dr. Neshamani. Officials estimate the tiger population in VTR at over 60. The reserve has witnessed several tiger deaths in recent years due to territorial clashes. In May last year, the carcass of a one-and-a-half-year-old cub was found in the Maguraha range, while another big cat was found dead in the same range in March 2024. Earlier incidents were also reported in January 2021 and December 2019. "High concentration of tigers in the Manguraha and adjoining ranges is driving frequent conflicts," the field director and wildlife conservator admitted, while acknowledging the challenge of finding effective measures to mitigate such clashes....