Man-eater: First Kill | Hunt

The elusive maneater had revealed itself, and Corbett was hot on her pursuit. Will he catch it or will the hunter will become the hunted? Jim Corbett’s adventure continues.

An illustration depicting the terror of Champavat Maneater. Source: Wikimedia commons

An illustration depicting the terror of Champavat Maneater. Source: Wikimedia commons

Corbett reached the village, and the crowd surrounded him, everybody started speaking altogether in their fear. He led a man and his wife aside who then pointed out the tree under which the girl was taken. He instructed the villagers to make no noise and stay within the village and set off in the direction of the tree.

A pool of blood had collected in the spot where the girl was killed, and from this spot, the visible tracks led up to the shoulder of the hill. Following the trail of blood, he found the girl’s clothes. His path further was obstructed by overgrown bushes and thorns. He was figuring a way around them when suddenly he heard footsteps behind him.

It wasn’t a wild animal but a person. A man from the village, as instructed by the Tahsildar, was following him. Displeased with his new company, he told the man to remove his heavy shoes and keep a lookout behind.

Unable to find a way through the overgrown thorn, Corbett decided to go through them. Across the thorns, the blood trail turned sharply left and went down a steep hill across a narrow stream of water. The man sent by Tahsildar was completely gripped in fear and paranoia by now. So, when they came across a thirty feet high rock, Corbett instructed him to climb it and keep watch. The panicky villager happily obliged. From here on, Corbett marched alone.

Some way down the hill, there was a small pool that had been formed by the conjunction of a deep ravine on the other side and the narrow water stream from up the hill. On the edge of the pool, Corbett spotted something sticking out and as he approached it, he realized it was the cut-off leg of the woman. His approach had disturbed the tigress during her meal. Around the pool were splinters of bone and fresh pugmarks of the tigress.

Suddenly, he felt fear running down his spine. Something was watching him and he knew that he was in grave danger. In an instant, the hunter had become the hunted.

He immediately pointed his rifle upwards and saw a shadow move and roll down the hill. His prompt action alarmed the tigress before she could spring on him. He went up the hill and found the spot where she had left her prey to come to have a look at him. The tigress was still carrying the body making it easy for him to follow the blood trail. He persistently followed her until the tigress began to voice her discontent by growling.

Surrounded by rocks and vegetation and in a labyrinth of chasm and caves, the echoing growl and the expectation of an attack terrified Corbett but also gave him hope. If the tigress lost her cool and launched an attack, it would allow him to take a clean shot. However, the growling was just a warning. When Tigress felt that her growling enabled him to track her even faster, she abandoned it promptly.

He was on her trail for four hours before he decided it was time to retreat as daylight was receding. The tigress was elusive and smart and had skillfully avoided him while carrying her prey. Her four hundred and thirty-sixth human kill!

Corbett needed to outsmart the tigress which meant only one thing–laying a trap in her territory.