Police are investigating a bizarre zoo killing after a penguin was found with its head cut off in its enclosure in Germany.
Shocked keepers at Rostock Zoo, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, discovered the Humboldt penguin with its severed head beside its body on 29th August.
They called in police when they realised the likelihood of it because caused by an accident or another animal was extremely remote.
In a statement from 29th August obtained by Newsflash, zoo spokeswoman Maria Seemann said: “Given the extraordinary circumstances of the discovery, the zoo team decided to consult the police.”
She added: “We were unable to rule out an abuse of the law for the protection of animals.”
Local media say the horrified keepers had been cleaning the enclosure when they found the severed head and a blood-stained rock.
But the zoo explained: “There were no bloodstains or feathers which would have indicated a battle involving a predatory animal.
“The penguin’s neck was seriously injured but there were – at first sight – no bite marks or cuts.”
The penguin’s body was given to police for an autopsy before the regional animal experts carry out their own investigation.
But autopsy experts say that despite the zoo’s first findings, they did discover bite marks on the penguin’s neck.
Zoo spokeswoman Seemann explained: “Pathologic examination results indicate that the five-year-old Humboldt penguin was injured by a predatory animal.
“There were multiple bite marks.”
Zoo chiefs have confined the rest of the penguin group to its pelican house as a precaution.
Local media speculate that a predatory fox could have been responsible for the killing.
Rostock Police spokeswoman Doerte Lembke said: “The investigation continues.”
Zoo Rostock features 6,500 animals of 500 different species.
Humboldt penguins (Spheniscus humboldti) are medium-sized penguins residing in South America.
Named after the German explorer Alexander von Humboldt, the species is listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
The total world population currently stands at approximately 24,000 mature animals.
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Story By: Thomas Hochwarter, Sub-Editor: Marija Stojkoska, Agency: Newsflash
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