A one year old tigress called Sharmila died due to this disease. It was fourth Royal Bengal Tiger to die at the Dhaka Zoo in a span of four weeks and another tiger is ready to die. The deaths are believed to have been caused by a blood parasite, Trypanosoma. This parasite originated in sub-Sahara Africa, where it was spread by tsetse flies. It has been eradicated in Africa, and recently reappeared in South Asia.
Experts are unsure how it is being transmitted.
When intelligence officials investigated into the matter they found 250 animals were died in a span of six months. Ten Royal Bengal Tigers which have been reported dead on Wednesday at the Nandankanan zoological park believed to be suffered from the same disease. The Nanankanan Zoo houses India's largest collection of Royal Bengal tigers and the world's largest collection of white tigers, limping and gasping to care for its animals since the devastating cyclone hit Orissa last year. The zoo had 56 tigers until the first one, a male named Sagar, died on Tuesday night and 9 more died in a span of twelve hours. All the deaths took place between midnight Tuesday and Wednesday morning.