A black panther has been spotted in a park in Spain. Photo / Thinkstock
A black panther has been spotted in a park in Spain. Photo / Thinkstock
The supposed sighting of a black panther in a park in Berja, southern Spain, has rattled the nearly 15,000 people who call the area home and fuelled speculation about the existence of the big cat.
Officials have closed the park, put out baited traps and installed cameras to catch theanimal, while six officers have been assigned to conduct an active search.
The cat was first spotted two weeks ago by a Berja resident but the sighting was not reported to police until a week later.
Two more people reported seeing it in the park and all of them agreed they had seen the same thing.
The cat may have escaped from a circus or a private property where it was being kept illegally, experts said on Tuesday.
Officials said the plan was to catch it with a tranquiliser dart and take it to the zoo in the nearby city of Tabernas.
The zoo's vet, Jose Maria Rodriguez, says a wild panther would be aggressive and attack if cornered "but this animal has not done that at any time and does not see people as food.
"They'll catch it if it really exists, especially if the animal is used to being in a cage."
