The lion population in the state is rising steadily and the last three census is a testament for the same. Number of lions rose from 359 in 2005 to 411 in 2010 and according to 2015 census it reached to 523a 27% increase in just five years. The leopard numbers have also augmented from 1,070 in 2006 to 1,160 in 2011.

As the population of big cats are on a rise, the forest department's data claims that the protected forest area has also increased. The reserved forest cover was 14,270 sqkm in 2006-2007 and rose to 14,387 sqkm in 2012-13. However, this is not sufficient for the rising feline population.

HS Singh, a retired Indian Forest Services officer said, "The number of big cats are growing in Gir. This results in infighting for territory. Lions are also seen venturing outside the forest.Infighting will continue as it is natural process to curb the population.However, I do not believe that the leopard deaths are due to in-fighting.The numbers does seem realistic."

Manish Vaidya, lawyer and crime against wildlife activist "Many times the forest department reports the death due to in-fighting to avoid investigation and shut the file. This could be the reason behind the higher numbers. It is unusually high for leopards; even for lions 11, deaths in a year is quite high."