A second of four racoons missing after escaping from a compound at a zoo on the Isle of Wight has been found – with two remaining on the run.
Four female racoons escaped their compound at Amazon World Zoo Park in Sandown on Friday morning.
One was caught at about 11pm the same day in Newchurch, close to the zoo, while two others have been spotted on the zoo’s grounds but are still at large.
Zoo staff worked through Friday night into Saturday morning, hunting with tracker dogs and drones, but to no avail.
But on Saturday evening, an update on the Isle Of Wight’s zoo’s social media shared a “racoon update,” proudly announcing: “We are ecstatic… we have just caught a second racoon!”
They also shared photos of the fluffy mammal entering the trap, and then peeping out from some hey after being brought down to safety.
According to the post, she was captured at around 6.15pm on the zoo grounds, near the top of the parrot perches.
Staff said she was being checked over, before being reunited with two of her sisters – one racoon who had remained in her enclosure while the great escape was taking place, and the first racoon to be recaptured.
The zoo said the search for the remaining two missing racoons was ongoing.
One of the escapees. Pic: PA
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‘They will be scared’
Since racoons are nocturnal animals, the main efforts to locate the animals have been from dusk to dawn, when they are most active.
Rachel Patrick, a headkeeper at the zoo, has asked members of the public to remain vigilant.
“Check your gardens, trees, hedgerows, and sheds just as if you were looking for a lost cat or dog.
“Please do not approach the animals. They are not aggressive normally but will be scared.”
Distinctive due to their black “mask” and black-banded tail, racoons are noted for their intelligence and dexterity – with their name hailing from the Algonquian Indian word translating as “he scratches with his hands”.
The zoo has asked anyone who spots the racoons to take a picture if it is safe to do so, with any reports sent to the racoon hotline by phone, message or WhatsApp on 07956 194981.