Kamphaeng phet: Authorities are rushing to capture a tiger after it ate a villager's sow. Thermal imaging drones have revealed images of a tiger that walked from Mae Wong National Park in Nakhon Sawan province and took refuge in a sugarcane field in Kamphaeng Phet province. The tiger had reportedly attacked a pig in a villager's pen and was now comfortably asleep. Authorities are planning to guide it back to Mae Wong National Park, which is 4 kilometers away.
According to Thai News Agency, a tiger was spotted descending from Mae Wong National Park and breaking into a villager's wild boar sty in Moo 5, Ban Tak Fa, Pang Ta Wai Subdistrict, Pang Sila Thong District, Kamphaeng Phet Province, in the middle of the night on February 28, 2026. The tiger killed a female wild boar and dragged the carcass into a nearby sugarcane field to eat. Throughout the day, officials from the Office of Protected Area Management Region 12 (Nakhon Sawan), Mae Wong National Park officials, and villagers patrolled the village and installed CCTV cameras to monitor the tiger's movements. Villagers were urged to be cautious and stay indoors at night, as the tiger is a young male expanding its hunting territory. Upon encountering the village's livestock sty, it is believed to be circling the area, intending to return for another hunt. Last night, a drone conducted a thermal imaging operation in the sugarcane field, only 100 meters from the sty, and located the tiger guarding the dead boar, pres umably having finished its meal. Officials continued to monitor the area throughout the night.
A drone camera clearly captured a large thermal image of the tiger, the perpetrator of the incident, lying among the carcasses of a pig in a sugarcane field. This aligns with the villagers' belief that the tiger has not gone anywhere but is using the darkness and dense vegetation for cover to feed on the remaining prey.
While villagers showed us tiger footprints, indicating the tiger had previously been roaming the village hunting for food, it's still unclear whether the tiger is male or female as it hasn't been clearly seen.
Thermal imaging evidence has confirmed the tiger's exact location. Special operations teams have surrounded the area and are closely monitoring it to prevent it from moving towards residential areas, particularly those with livestock like buffalo and pigs near the sugarcane fields. Wildlife experts are currently assessing the situation to ensure the safety of residents and are planning to guide the tiger back to Mae Wong National Park, which is 4 kilometers away. Whether or not to use tranquilizer darts for relocation will be determined after an assessment this afternoon.