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ANIMAL

‘Black panther’ sighting sparks alert in France

Hunters were out in force in the Alpes-Maritimes area of southern France on Monday after a member of the public claimed to have spotted a mysterious 'black panther.'

Published: 28 January 2013 11:46 CET
'Black panther' sighting sparks alert in France
File photo of a black panther. (Not the one claimed to have been seen in southern France) Photo: LaggedOnUser/Flickr

The witness raised the alarm with police on Sunday afternoon, claiming to have seen the wild cat near the village of Villeneuve-Loubet.

The call sparked a massive cat-hunt across the area on Sunday afternoon involving police, fire-fighters and officers from the gendarmerie.

On Monday police said they had not yet found any trace of the panther and the National Hunting Office would be taking over the search, France’s TF1 TV reported.

In 2004 a similar hunt was organised around Marseille after the sighting of a panther-like animal. No beast was ever found.

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ANIMAL

Paris authorities to shut down bird market over cruelty concerns

The Paris city council on Wednesday agreed to shut down a live bird market operating in the historic centre close to Notre Dame cathedral, responding to rights activists who called it a cruel and archaic operation.

Published: 4 February 2021 11:37 CET
Paris authorities to shut down bird market over cruelty concerns
Photo: AFP

The bird market on Louis Lepine square in the centre of the French capital has long been a fixture in Paris, operating close to the famous flower market.

But Christophe Najdovski, Paris' deputy mayor in charge of animal welfare, said that the market was a centre for bird trafficking in France while conditions for the birds were not acceptable.

“This is why we are committed to changing the regulations to ban the sale of birds and other animals,” he said.

The closure had been urged by activists from the Paris Animals Zoopolis collective who had called the practice of showing the caged birds “cruel and archaic”.

France and Paris have in the last months adopted a series of measures aiming to show they are at the forefront of efforts to protect animal welfare.

The government said in September it planned to “gradually” ban mink farms as well the use of wild animals in travelling circuses and dolphins and orcas in theme parks.

Parc Asterix, which normally has some two million visitors a year, announced last month it would close its dolphin and sea lion aquarium.

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