The Dallas Zoo in Texas on Friday found a clouded leopard that had escaped from its enclosure hours earlier but ultimately did not leave the site.
The 4-year-old animal, named Nova, was found within the grounds of the park, “very close to its original habitat”, and does not appear to be injured, the zoo tweeted.
He had issued the alert in the morning, warning that the feline was missing, while noting that it presented “no threat to humans”.
“If you come across a feline larger than a domestic cat but smaller than a lynx, we would very much like you to let us know,” said Harrison Edell, a zoo official. “We are takers of any tip.”
“If she’s scared, most likely she’ll climb a tree, stay away from us, chase a few squirrels and birds, and hope not to be noticed.”
Zoo workers discovered that Nova had taken to their heels when they noticed, while inspecting the enclosure she shares with her sister Luna, a breach in the fence.
“She probably climbed straight into the trees and didn’t come back down, so we spend a lot of time screwed to our binoculars,” said Harrison Edell, saying he was convinced that she hadn’t gone “very far “.
According to the official, the Dallas police assisted in the search and employed drones with infrared vision to scan the treetops.
Clouded leopards live wild in the Himalayas and parts of Southeast Asia and China.
