Horned goat-antelope escapes from Paignton Zoo enclosure

It is thought the goat-antelope was spooked by vets working with the tur herd

A horned goat-antelope has escaped from its enclosure at Paignton Zoo.

The young female West Caucasian tur was spooked while vets were working with the herd, according to the Devon zoo.

The animal, which is a kind of mountain goat, cleared a fence and entered woodland "well inside the perimeter of the zoo".

Last September another female tur, which was described as a "danger to the public", escaped from the zoo prompting a search by specialists and police.

The zoo said the police had not been involved this time as the animal had not gone beyond the perimeter fence.

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Spokesman Phil Knowling said the young tur was not dangerous but would be "alarmed and disorientated".

"We know that the best thing to do is to leave it alone, monitor it from a distance and wait for it to return to its enclosure," he said.

The West Caucasian tur is a mountain-dwelling goat-antelope found in the Caucasus Mountains range between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea and is listed as an endangered species.