Chilean authorities captured a second cougar in little more than a week late Wednesday after the cat was spotted strolling through an upscale suburb of Santiago amid the evening quiet imposed nationwide.
Gavino Garay has more.
Cougars venture into quarantined Santiago for food
A cougar ventures into the empty streets of Santiago - a surreal image for this normally bustling city.
The 25-kilo female is the second cougar discovered in Santiago in a little over a week.
Regional Agriculture Director Marcelo Giagnoni says the cougars are emboldened by the scarcity of humans..
(SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) REGIONAL DIRECTOR OF THE AGRICULTURE AND LIVESTOCK SERVICE, MARCELO GIAGNONI, SAYING: "The world has never been paralyzed like today.
We have these cases of cougars, we have seen in the news of other countries another type of fauna that enters the city, for the same reason - humans aren't there, there is no noise, they dare to explore a little more.
So, we don't have previous statistics because I believe that this is a unique phenomenon we are all experiencing today." Experts say a severe drought in foothills around Santiago had likely already brought the cats, desperate for food, to the city´s door step.
For the cougar captured last week roaming through an upscale santiago neighborhood - It was a happy ending.
She was released back into the wild just a few short days later after vets said she was in excellent health -- the second cougar has been tranquilized and taken to Santiago's Metropolitan Park zoo for health evaluation.