Visitors evacuated from Tama Zoological Park Photo: Tekehito Kabayashi / AP / Profimedia
A gray wolf escaped from its enclosure at a zoo in the west of the Japanese capital Tokyo on Sunday, which forced the institution to temporarily close its gates and ask visitors to take refuge inside the buildings, inform EFE and Kyodo, quoted by Agerpres.
“A wolf has escaped from the zoo. To ensure security, we are temporarily suspending (visitor) access. If you are already inside the zoo, please gather in front of the main gate or stay in a safe area inside a building,” Tama Zoo, located in the Tokyo suburb of Hino, posted on social media platform X.
According to public broadcaster NHK, a park employee initially informed zoo officials about the presence of the wolf in one of the visitor areas around 9:30 a.m. local time.
A wolf has escaped its enclosure at Tokyo's Tama Zoo: visitors inside the park are taking shelter inside buildings and staff are trying to capture the animal, which is still inside the grounds of the zoo.pic.twitter.com/hsSinaKfac https://t.co/5HW90rAh11
— Jeffrey J. Hall 🇯🇵🇺🇸 (@mrjeffu) December 28, 2025
After nearly five hours on the loose, the wolf was finally captured after an employee spotted it in an area of bushes, Kyodo reported.
The animal is one of two gray wolves currently at the zoo, which opened in the 1950s as a satellite of Tokyo's popular Ueno Zoo and is home to some 260 species.
