After a laboratory analysis, there is now more clarity: in the forests near Kleinmachnow, south of Berlin, there was no lioness. A spokeswoman for the Potsdam-Mittelmark district said today that an initial assessment of a faecal sample showed the animal sought was a herbivore. “We don’t have to assume a lion.”
The fur found during the search also does not have the properties of cat fur, according to an examination. “Based on visual inspection, the laboratory concludes that the object under investigation is almost certainly not cat hair,” the municipality of Kleinmachnow said in an interim trace analysis result.
The lab didn’t have boar hair for comparison, but lion hair did. Its structure is fundamentally different from that of examination hair.
However, at this moment it cannot be said with absolute certainty that it is boar fur. The final result of laboratory analyzes by the Leibniz Institute for Research in Zoology and Wildlife is still pending.
Unsuccessful searches
The search for an alleged predator has been making headlines across Germany since Thursday. Authorities did not see any further acute dangers on Friday and, based on expert assessment, no longer assumed a lioness roamed the region.
The search operations – also with helicopters and drones – did not bring evidence of a big cat loose.
The police and community of Kleinmachnow started on Thursday due to a cell phone video of a witness. After an initial assessment, police assumed a lioness was likely running free in the woods. The population should limit outdoor activities.