A young runaway capybara has prompted an unusual community search in a quiet part of southern England. Pub sightings, stakeouts along the riverbank, and drone flights have all, so far, failed to bring her home.
The escape has made nine-month-old Samba into a local celebrity and a national curiosity after she escaped from a temporary enclosure at Marwell Zoo less than a day after arriving.
What happened?
According to The Guardian, Samba and her sister, Tango, were transferred from Jimmy's farm and wildlife park in Suffolk to Marwell Zoo near Winchester on March 16. Tango was recovered quickly, but Samba got through a hole in the enclosure and has remained at large.
Even with reported sightings in a pub beer garden, on a riverbank, and in the River Itchen, Samba has not been caught. Laura Read, chief executive of Marwell Zoo, said, "We have deployed search teams including the use of specialist dog units used to track her scent, and thermal drones."
Emma Smith, manager of the Ship Inn in Owslebury, said dogs and drones turned up after the animal was seen near the pub two days after her escape. "It's been proper crazy," Smith said. "It's just a little village, you know?"
Because Samba is still a pup rather than a full-grown capybara, she is harder to spot. Capybaras can grow up to 5 feet long and weigh as much as 146 pounds (66 kilograms).
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Why does it matter?
Unlike a wild capybara in its native South America, Samba is a zoo animal that had only just been moved into a new environment and placed in a temporary enclosure before escaping.
Read said, "Capybaras are social animals and our focus is on retrieving Samba safely and reuniting her with her sister Tango back at Marwell zoo." With no natural predators in the United Kingdom, the main concern appears to be the separation.
What's being done?
Dr. Mark Pickering, a member of the University of Southampton's engineering department, said, "The technology is similar to what's commonly used in search and rescue by emergency services, but this capybara is quite a small animal, in a large habitat," according to The Guardian.
Search teams have used scent-tracking dogs, thermal drones, and volunteers on the ground to locate Samba.
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Claudie Paddick, a family lawyer, filmed Samba near the River Itchen while walking her dogs. "It was bonkers," Paddick said. "I didn't even know what a capybara was." She later realized the animal was the zoo's missing escapee after showing the footage to neighbors.
After hearing about Samba, Eliza Holland traveled to Winchester and became one of the members of the public taking part in the search. "We've seen Samba sunbathing already. So I think she's a lady of leisure."
The zoo is asking people not to share sightings in real time and instead to call its 24-hour hotline at 07436 167401.
Holland said, "There's instantly a connection you make with people walking along the riverbank and you say, have you seen a capybara here? They're very inviting."
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