Coimbatore: In a novel protest to bring the attention of the district administration to straying of wild animals in fields, a group of farmers today brought a ‘leopard and bear’ to the District Collectorate.

Farmers from areas like Anaikatti and Tholampalayam, affiliated to Tamil Nadu Farmers Association of CPI, arrived to meet District Collector T N Hariharan today, grievances day, to inform him about the problems posed by wild animals.

They also brought two persons dressed up as `bear and leopard’, to bring to the attention of the administration their plight, as the wild animals strayed into the fields and damaged crops, farmers said.

Though the forest department was taking measures to prevent the animals to a certain extent, there was staff shortage to reach inner areas, they said.

In the memorandum, farmers appealed to the Collector to form a special squad to monitor the movement and protect farmers and their crops.