Guwahati, Jul 13 (IANS): Another carcass of an adult Royal Bengal Tiger was recovered in Assam's world-famous Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve on Tuesday, taking to four the number of big cats found dead there in the past five months, officials said.

Park officials said that the 10-day old carcass of the tiger (sex not identified) was found near Laudubi area under the Kaziranga Range.

"Due to the active decay of the carcass, no concrete conclusion of cause of death can be opined. Samples of intestine and skin have been collected for DNA and toxicological study," an official said.

"In our opinion, the probable cause of death could be natural, suspected to be infighting," the official added.

A forest guard was recently suspended for "unwarranted firing" leading to the death of an approximately 10-year-old male Royal Bengal Tiger in the park on June 18.

A senior park official, refusing to name the suspended forest guard, said that he was instructed to give protection to households of the nearby Kaziranga National Park areas only.

"But the forest guard initiated the operation without the required arrangement. He couldn't run away when the tiger tried to attack him. Instead of firing in the air, he fired at the animal, killing the tiger on the spot," the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told IANS.

An inquiry conducted by the Assistant Conservator of Forests into the incident revealed that the firing was unwarranted, based on which the guard was suspended, the statement said.

On June 5, the carcass of a four-year-old male tiger was found in Sidha Kathoni area of the national park. Forest officials had said that it was killed in a fight.

The carcass of a female tiger cub with puncture marks on its neck and broken ribs was found in the national park in February. The death was also attributed to an attack by another tiger.

Set up in 1908, Kaziranga, one of India's seven UNESCO world heritage sites, extends across Assam's Golaghat, Nagaon, Sonitpur, Biswanath and Karbi Anglong districts. It is home to more than 2,400 one-horned Indian rhinos, approximately two thirds of the total world population.

Besides rhinos, it has 121 tigers, 1,089 elephants and huge numbers of Asiatic buffalo, swamp deer, wild boar, hog deer, porcupine and other endangered animals and snakes.