Pune, Jan 30 (IANS): A five-year old male leopard who met with a serious accident on the Pune-Nashik Highway has been rescued and is undergoing treatment at a specialised medical facility here, officials said on Tuesday.

The incident was reported late on Monday when a speeding vehicle knocked the leopard which lay badly injured in Kalamb area of the Manchar Forest Range.

Wildlife SOS rushed to the spot after a distress call from the Maharashtra Forest Department and shifted the injured and bleeding feline to the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre in Junnar.

When the Wildlife SOS team reached the Kalamb area, they encountered a tough scenario as a huge crowd gathered to watch the leopard, blocking the road.

Even the injured feline was extremely agitated by the noisy crowds around and his own suffering, but finally the SOS team tranquilised him with a dart gun.

They gently lifted the leopard into the trap cage and sped off to the Junnar facility.

The vets there subjected him to the thorough medical examination and found serious trauma (head injuries), a broken mandible (lower jaw), cracked canines and incisors and other external bruises.

According to Dr. Chandan Sawane of Wildlife SOS, the leopard is now in a state of lateral recumbency (lying on side), put on oral medication and antibiotics, supportive therapies and is eating well.

Wildlife SOS co-founder and CEO Kartick Satyanarayan said the incident highlighted the harsh realities of road accidents involving wild creatures, an outcome of the expanding urban landscape and shrinking habitats as highways keep cutting through their natural habitats.