Animals that escaped their homes at the Singapore Zoo

After an African monkey was caught in Choa Chu Kang on Nov 1 having fled from his exhibit six months earlier, The Straits Times looks at other animals that have managed to escape from their enclosures at the Singapore Zoo.

1. Black panther, 1973

In March 1973, just months before the Singapore Zoo opened in June that year, a three-year-old black panther named Twiggy slipped out of its cage, even though its cage was securely locked.

Nearly 200 police troopers and Singapore Armed Forces sharpshooters combed the forest reserve area near the zoo in a bid to recapture it.

Twiggy was eventually spotted in a monsoon drain near the former Singapore Turf Club in Bukit Timah in January 1974, where it suffocated to death during an attempt to scare it into nets using fire.

2. Sun bears, 1973

Two sun bears also escaped from their cage the day before Twiggy vanished. Investigations showed that one of the cage bars was forced apart and the bears squeezed out through a narrow opening.

One bear was re-captured immediately while the other died after being shot 45m from the cage after a search, the duration of which was not specified.

3. Hippopotamus, 1974

A hippopotamus, named Congo, was believed to have climbed out of its enclosure and forced its way past a zoo fence to escape in January 1974.

It was reportedly grief-stricken and was thought to be looking for its mate, Lucy, who had died three months earlier.

Congo was later spotted at the Upper Seletar Reservoir, near the zoo, before it was finally lured by zookeepers into a crate with bananas and sweet potato, 52 days after it escaped.

4. Antelope, 1974

After jumping over a 2.4 metre-high barbed wire fence in January 1974, a female African antelope, known as eland, gave up her fight for freedom just 11 days later. She gave in to her hunger and trotted back to the zoo, her cage and her mate.

She eventually settled into her home, and 18 months later gave birth to a calf, which was believed the be the first eland born in the region.

5. Chimpanzee, 2004

In April 2004, Six-year-old star chimpanzee Ramba was hit with a tranquiliser dart on its stomach after it climbed a palm tree and escaped its enclosure, even after being zapped by electric barriers.

The barriers and dart did not stop the 30kg chimp from dashing through two animal exhibits and and straight into the Upper Seletar Reservoir, where it eventually drowned about 25 minutes after its escape.

The tragedy led to the formation of Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres), said Nee Soon MP Louis Ng, who is the founder of Acres, in a 2020 Facebook post.

5. Jaguar, 2005

About 500 visitors were evacuated from the zoo after a jaguar named Angel squeezed through an opening zookeepers used to feed it in April 2005.

Within 30 minutes, the big cat was caught - lured by an unscheduled meal of meat - and returned to its repaired enclosure.

6. Orang utan, 2005

Medan, daughter of star orang utan Ah Meng, made headlines when she let go of her zookeeper’s hand and ran up a tree in October 2005.

The Borneo orang utan was walking back to her enclosure after a photography session when she took the opportunity to dash. She came down on her own, after about an hour, after being persuaded by bananas and oranges.

7. Wild dog, 2014

An African wild dog broke free from its exhibit in September 2014, leading to a temporary closure of the main entrance at the zoo. It was recaptured within after about half an hour, and no one was hurt.