Two to seven-day-old carcasses of 12 peacocks were found in the buffer zone of Ramgarh Vishdhari Tiger Reserve in Indergarh range of Bundi district on Friday noon, with officials suspecting disease may have caused the deaths. Meanwhile, seven turtles were found dead at the bank of a water body near c in the territorial area of the tiger reserve, under Bansi forest checkpost on Friday.

Peacock, the national bird, is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, that grants highest level of legal protection in India, while turtles are highly protected under the act, with many species listed under Schedule I and Schedule IV.