Police are still looking for a big cat on the loose in Berlin and Brandenburg. Around 100 emergency services are currently employed, according to the Berlin police. During the night there was therefore no new information on his whereabouts. According to a spokeswoman in Berlin, the search is still focused on the southern districts. What exactly the measures will look like on the day is not yet known. According to a spokeswoman for the western Brandenburg police department, the current situation is expected to be discussed in the early hours of the morning.
Professional animal trackers will scour the forest, as announced by the mayor of Kleinmachnow, Michael Grubert (SPD), on the RBB. “It can’t go on like this for days,” Grubert said, referring to the large-scale police operation.
On Thursday night, a large cat on the loose was said to have been spotted in Kleinmachnow in Brandenburg, on the border with Berlin. A few seconds of video from a witness’ cell phone show an animal sneaking through bushes and trees. The investigating authorities believe that the video is authentic. Police officers also think they saw the big cat “secured away,” a spokeswoman said. There were further possible sightings Thursday afternoon and evening in the Berlin area near the southern border with Brandenburg.
According to police, indications of lion roars have not been confirmed. “Our colleagues investigated this together with a veterinarian and the city hunter. Even with the help of a drone, the clues were not confirmed.” tweeted the Berlin police. Maybe it was a public joke.
Expert: I only see two wild boars
Berlin wildlife expert Derk Ehlert is skeptical that a big cat is actually running free through Berlin and Brandenburg. He could only see two wild boars running left to right in the famous video, he told RBB Inforadio on Friday morning. “But of course I believe the witnesses, colleagues from the Berlin police, who actually saw such an animal,” Ehlert added. However, he makes it suspicious that no traces have been found so far. “Basically, a lion can’t just disappear, nor can a lioness. She leaves tracks,” said the wildlife expert. “It’s very surprising that where the animal was seen and filmed, not a single footprint can be seen.” However, it could be that the animal runs in Berlin and Brandenburg.
About 220 police officers were on duty in the Zehlendorf area Thursday evening, where there were possible sightings, a police spokesman said. The city’s vets and hunter were involved in the search. Night vision goggles and a night vision drone were deployed. “We look at the forests, but we don’t go any further,” a spokesman for the German news agency said overnight.
So far, however, a trace is missing: neither the blood, nor the feces, nor the paw prints have indicated the presence of the animal in the region. From the point of view of veterinarian Achim Gruber of the Free University of Berlin, doubts remain as to whether it is really a lioness. “I think it’s possible she’s a lioness, but I’m not convinced,” Gruber said in the RBB special. He bet on the hunting dogs that were looking for the animal. If they find no tracks, that’s “a strong piece of the puzzle” against the assumption that it’s a lioness. And if she really is a lioness, then the question remains: where did she come from? At least not from the zoos, wildlife parks and circuses in this region, as police discovered overnight. No one has lost a big cat there. According to Mayor Grubert, the private owners are not known in Kleinmachnow.
