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Modhwadia added that there has been no such suspected death of lions in the last two days.

Modhwadia said, “Deaths of eight lion cubs have come to light. And whether the deaths have occurred owing to Babesia or for some other reason, its confirmation can be done only after getting the medical report.”

Babesia, a parasitic disease, spreads through ticks and can cause weakness, coughing and nasal discharge in affected animals.

The deaths of the big cat cubs due to suspected Babesia infection have been reported in the revenue areas outside the Gir sanctuary, particularly in Gir Gadhada of Gir Somnath and Babra Kot of Amreli districts, he said.

Earlier, on May 26, Modhwadia had said that two lion cubs had died of suspected infection caused by Babesia parasite. Following the suspected deaths of the parasitic infection, Modhwadia said the forest department has started taking all the preventing measures to check spread of any infection. Lions in the 10-km area from where the suspected deaths were reported have been isolated.

In 2018, eleven lions had died in Gujarat within a month due to a combination of canine distemper virus and protozoal infection. As per a census conducted last year, Gujarat had 891 Asiatic lions. (With PTI inputs)