Search For Wild Cat Missing On Dartmoor

A police helicopter has been deployed to help search for a lynx that has gone missing from a zoo on Dartmoor. 

Officers were told at 10.20am on Thursday that the wild cat had escaped its enclosure.

The two-year-old male, called Flaviu, is thought to have left Dartmoor Zoological Park following a search of the grounds by 30 staff and volunteers.

Zoo operations manager George Hyde told reporters the lynx is "about the size of a small labrador". 

He said the zoo was prepared for such situations and that the risk to the public was "very, very low". 

The Carpathian lynx is a new addition at the zoo, and was settled into its enclosure at 7.30pm on Wednesday.

Keepers discovered it had gone at 10am on Thursday.

"The house into which he was released has successfully held Lynx for eight years, however he managed to escape by chewing through a board in the wall of the house," a zoo spokesman said.

Flaviu was fed before he went missing. 

"We're quite fortunate because we're in a very rural location so in that respect the likelihood of the lynx coming into contact with people is very slim," Mr Hyde said. 

"If he did, he would look to get away from those people rather than attack.

"He is a wild animal, he's captive bred, which means that he's never hunted and he's never killed for food.

"The likelihood is that he'll be very scared, he'll be very anxious.

"He'll be much more likely to stay away from people and to stay hidden."

Humane traps containing various types of meat have been set up.  

As well as assisting with the search, police have visited two local schools to offer advice.  

Officers have also made house calls to talk to residents. 

The National Police Air Service helicopter has been helping in a search of the zoological park's boundaries.

Anyone who makes a sighting is asked to call 999. 

The Carpathian lynx is described as a solitary and secretive animal whose natural habitat is forests in Europe and Siberia. 

Its main prey is deer, hares, rabbits, rodents and grouse. 

It is critically endangered in some areas, but has "bounced back from extinction", according to WWF.