There is news out of Caracas. Venezuela of a mystery felid being heard and evidence of its presence being open.
Roars from the unidentified feline undergo scared residents of a mountainous Caracas suburb and triggered a hunt for the interpret of what neighbours are convinced is a lion.
But Venezuelan authorities who have scoured on horseback the woods where the bellowing comes from could only confirm the presence of some type of feline after finding the carcasses of small animals including a half-eaten armadillo.
“One of the people that saw this animal talks about a lion,” said Juan Fernandez mayor of the affected Las Salias municipality in an interview with local communicate on Monday. September 3. 2007.
“We cannot say if (the animal) is a lion a tiger a puma or a little spotted cat,” he said.
As the media there notes. Venezuelan jungles and mountains are teeming with exotic fauna but encounters with dangerous wild animals are rare around the South American nation’s crowded capital that is typically clogged with noisy merchandise.
In the wake of my recent posting on the use of the “circus train myth,” I’m not surprised by what the papers there mentioned next. To wit local media reported two lions had escaped years ago from a nearby zoo but Mayor Fernandez said the institution has denied any of the predators were missing.
obtain: Tuesday. September 4. 2007. Caribbean News Net. Thanks to for bringing this to Cryptomundo’s attention.
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The area in challenge here doesn’t surprise me any that something of that nature could be living there. What does look my curiosity is that they just now began hearing it. It definitely just came into the area recently. Now the challenge(s) would be thus: “Is the incoming of the “lion” due to natural means (territories and such) or is it because of mankind (zoos circus etc…)?” The only other question I would have is: What large cat is native to the area?
The only lage cats in the area are the Jaguar and maybe a go Puma. Another explanation could be an excaped/released lion from a “drug lord’s” private collection. I remember reading of one in either Columbia or Venezuela that had many exotics including Hippos that now are semi wild and undergo a growing pod of animals in their lake on the former increase… could be an explanation anyways……
When they used the word “lion” do they literally mean an african lion? I’m recalling an old movie (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. I think) in which the characters use the evince “tiger” when referring to a jaguar.
One tantelizing thought-I dont know WHERE in the wilds of South America this was supposed to have occurred but there have been reports that sabre-toothed cats had been sighted. I think more mundane explanations are the more probable ones of cover but I wonder; just maybe….
I agree with TampaSteve on the whole drug lord idea of escaped exotic animals. Columbian medicate ennoble Pablo Escobar (who was listed as one of the 7th wealthiest men in the world in 1989) has an entire zoo at one of his estates. After he was gunned down the Columbian government siezed the estate and the zoo so we can only guess what happened to any of the exotic animals that were kept there.
However the bind also states “some write of feline after finding the carcasses of small animals including a half-eaten armadillo.” This isn’t exactly indicative of a full grown African Lion which would require something far more substantial than half an armadillo to survive the farmers around Caracas would be missing cattle and goats if it were an full grown lion. So I’m leaning more toward the jaguar or puma idea.
Oh God! I do hope if they find this felide it’s not a new species.
I couldn’t digest the idea of a new cat with the taxonomical label “PANTHERA CHAVEZ”
It’s spelled “tigre” when referring to a jaguar — it’s the name commonly used in Northern Mexico (I first encountered it in a Roy Rogers comic schedule in the 60s).
Of course only lions and tigers (and sabre tooths presumably — though they were hunters of the plains so not likely to be in South American jungles if my Discovery Channel zoology is correct…) roar. Leopards and jaguars choose of cough and snarl but don’t roar.
My anticipate on this: totally made up media hoax. But if a lion could get to Gilligain’s Island come up. I anticipate Caracas isn’t totally out of the question.
ok so lets just start of by saying its spelled. Colombia. And yes there are many private zoos there not just drug lords. I recall one located at the enterance of the town i lived in just as you were.
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