Boasting an average weight range of 77-146 pounds, capybara are the largest rodents living on planet earth today. Dare I say, they are rodents of unusual size. Yet not too large that they can’t still pull off a months-long escape, as one zoo in England has found out. Marwell Wildlife welcomed nine-month-old sister capybara Samba and Tango on March 16. By March 17, the stealth sisters had foxtrotted out of their new digs (presumably to sniff out a local Irish pub for the holiday). Tango was recovered on zoo grounds a day after the jail break, but Samba is still at large. The good news is, capybara are resilient semiaquatic herbivores and there is dense vegetation and rivers near the zoo. The bad news is, the dense vegetation and rivers near the zoo make it that much easier for Samba to stay undercover. But the humans of Marwell haven’t given up their diligent rescue efforts! The zoo has dedicated a whole Samba Update page on their website, which included a promising bulletin from last Friday. Here’s the APB on the missing CPB:
On Friday, June 5, Marwell Wildlife, which owns Marwell Zoo, said in a Facebook post that there had been “several credible sightings” of the animal in the Bradbridge area of Hampshire in recent days. “More than 20 members of the Marwell team have been carrying out a coordinated ground search, alongside the deployment of additional camera traps in the area,” the facility wrote in the caption of a video update.
“While our thermal drones and camera trap network continue to play a vital role in the search for Samba, putting large numbers of people on the ground is only effective when we have specific, recent information about where she may be,” they continued.
The zoo added that the new sightings have helped to narrow the search area for the capybara as teams look “for footprints, droppings and any direct signs of Samba’s presence.”
“As the video shows, the vegetation in this area is extremely dense, making the search challenging even when we have a likely location,” Marwell Wildlife continued alongside footage of the search area.
Zoo officials went on to say that the search for Samba was ongoing and that her welfare was their top priority. “We’re incredibly grateful for the continued support and sightings reported by our local community, which remain invaluable to the search efforts,” the park added.
Marwell Wildlife first announced Samba’s disappearance in a Facebook post on March 19. “On Monday we welcomed two female capybaras, Samba and Tango, who arrived from Jimmy’s Farm & Wildlife Park,” they wrote at the time. “On Tuesday they managed to get out of their temporary holding area and although Tango didn’t stray too far, and was able to be quickly retrieved, Samba was more adventurous.”
In the update on Friday, zoo officials asked people to take a photo and send it to 07436 116740 if they see Samba.
It’s been a minute since we’ve had an animal on the lam story. Now Samba joins the great pantheon of Valerie the miniature dachshund, Leonardo the tortoise (a fellow England resident), and George the cat. Whenever we get these stories, I find myself torn between wanting the critters to be safe, yet greatly admiring their indomitable, intrepid spirits! In terms of Samba’s current safety, Marwell Zoo says she “has access to food, water and will have no natural predators.” So Samba has the means to survive, but can she thrive on her own? That’s what has me worried, because capybara are known to be social, gregarious creatures. How will Samba gregariate on her own?? Plus, she’s separated from her sister — they started this journey together! Sure, Marwell claims Tango is enjoying the summer weather, “relaxing in the sun and napping in her hay.” But Tango is alone at the zoo now and that’s just no good, cause as we all know, it takes two to Tango! (This dad joke was sponsored by the month of June.)
Yeah, so while I’ll always be saluting an independent animal taking charge of their own destiny, in this particular case my emotions are with the sister act, may they be reunited once again. You can follow Marwell’s quest to recapture Samba on their website, which also includes tips for how to help out on the ground if you’re local. (You know they’re taking the mission seriously when zoo updates begin, “We received credible intelligence…”) The FAQ section has Qs that I actually would never think to ask, like “How can I tell the difference between a capybara and a muntjac?” (one of those is a deer), or “Why are you not using the other capybara, Tango, to help find her?” Hey, Tango has suffered enough undue stress over this separation, let her nap in her hay!
Photos are stock images credit: Jean-Paul Wettstein, Saplak, Surja Raj and Marian Havenga on Pexels