Missing lynx ‘being hunted by gunman’
ZOOKEEPERS fear hunters are trying to track down and kill a missing lynx.
Flaviu, a two-year-old Carpathian Lynx, has been missing for 12 days and staff at Dartmoor Zoo in Devon admit they are running out of ideas to recapture it.
Owner Ben Mee said there have been several false sightings and someone has been spotted in the area with a gun, sparking fears for the animal’s life.
He said: “Idiots are out there trying to snare or shoot him just for a selfie next to a corpse. For people to go looking for him is beyond counterproductive. We want him to feel safe in that territory, sleeping in the day and hunting at night.”
Mr Mee admitted he would secretly be “really proud” of Flaviu if he disappeared and made a new life for himself but conceded his disappearance is a “massive liability” for the zoo.
The latest attempt to recapture him has involved lining up a series of large cages with bedding belonging to Flaviu’s mother. Mr Mee added: “It’s a patience game. As long as he remains in this area, it’s very likely that he will return.”
The lynx – native to the mountains of central and eastern Europe – went missing after gnawing his way out of an enclosure just hours after it arrived at the zoo. Staff, volunteers, police, dogs, drones and helicopters have all been searching for the cat. Other attempts to entice the lynx back included playing its mother’s call into the nearby countryside.
Mr Mee inspired the Hollywood film We Bought a Zoo when the freelance writer opened the park on a tight budget in 2006.