In a rare case of cannibalism, a tiger is suspected to have killed and eaten a tigress in the famous Kanha Tiger Reserve of Madhya Pradesh, a forest official said Monday.

Some ground duty officials found a feline’s skull and four limbs, one of which was partially eaten, at Mundi-Dadar in the reserve’s core area in Mandla district during patrolling on Saturday, Kanha Tiger Reserve’s field director K. Krishnamurthy told PTI.

“A tiger was noticed in the area, suggesting that it may have killed the big cat, which appears to be female.

Circumstantial evidence suggests that the tiger, during a territorial fight, dragged the tigress for about 700 metres,” he said.

Asked about the possibility of the tiger seen around the carcass having eaten it, Krishnamurthy said cannibalism was “not uncommon” among tigers.

He, however, said scavengers also might have eaten the feline after it was killed.

The official ruled out the possibility of poaching of the striped animal in the reserve’s core area.

In December 2006, an attempt was made to poach a tiger in Kanha, but it was foiled by tourists.

Madhya Pradesh has six major reserves for the national animal and is often called as the ‘tiger state’. Prominent among them are Bandhavgarh, Pench and Kanha tiger reserves.