A month-old leopard cub is expected to make a full recovery after being hidden in a passenger's bag on an international flight from Thailand to India.

Key points: Customs staff made the discovery after hearing a "faint sound" coming from the man's luggage

Customs staff made the discovery after hearing a "faint sound" coming from the man's luggage The cub, which weighed just 1.1 kilograms, will be rehomed at a local zoo in India

The cub, which weighed just 1.1 kilograms, will be rehomed at a local zoo in India Authorities are investigating if the passenger is part of an international smuggling ring

The cub was found at Chennai Airport by security officials who were acting on a tip-off.

Noting a man walking in a "suspicious manner", they then heard a "faint sound" coming from the bag he had just picked up from the baggage carousel, the Times of India reported.

When the bag was opened, staff discovered a pink plastic basket with the leopard cub inside.

The one-month old female, which weighed just 1.1 kilograms, was making "trill sounds and appeared to be weak", Chennai Airport Commissioner of Customs Rajan Chaudhary said.

Customs officers fed the leopard cub milk to replenish its energy. ( Twitter: Chennai Customs )

Customs staff bottle-fed the jet-setting cub milk until officials from the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau arrived, and it — along with the 45-year-old suspect — were handed over to the Tamil Nadu Forest Department for further action.

Mr Chaudhary said the cub would be rehomed at the Aringa Anna Zoological Park after its ordeal, while authorities are now investigating if the passenger is part of an international smuggling ring.

Wildlife crime has grown into a significant area of transnational organised crime, worth between $9 billion and $29 billion a year worldwide, and authorities in Thailand have been working to crack down on the trade.