A cheeky bear who had been on a honey-stealing rampage for nine months has been recaptured, bringing his campaign of naughtiness to an abrupt end.
Papillon, who is three, was finally caught near the town of Trione in northern Italy, after causing havoc with a series of mischievous antics, including shaking a caravan, crossing a motorway and chasing livestock.
The brown bear’s incarceration has enraged animals rights groups, though Papillon may take comfort in finding a female companion named DJ3 on his return to his enclosure near Trento. His remarkable run for freedom from the site involved scaling a 13ft electric fence charged with 7,000 volts, The Times reported.
After his daring escape nine months ago, the young animal – reportedly named after a 1973 prison-break film – went on to cause carnage across the region, damaging bee hives, being foiled by sheep dogs during an attack on a herd of cows and frightening two shepherds by shaking their caravan in an effort to empty a bin.
The paper added that he went on to cross a motorway during a 350-mile wander around Lake Garda this year, following a period of hibernation.
After taking to the mountains in March, Papillon, also known as M49, was filmed rolling around in deep snow before hunters caught up with him this week, when his reign of roguery was brought to a close.
The Times reported that he had been part of a programme to reintroduce bears to the Italian Alps, but his taste for donkeys and sheep meant he had to be rounded up last year.
His latest capture involved being lured into a large tube trap – causing consternation among animal welfare groups.
But a farmers group called Coldiretti said the move came as a ‘sigh of relief to mountain dwellers who felt vulnerable’.
LAV, an Italian animal welfare group, says it will sue the local authority to get Papillon released. A spokesman added: ‘He was never a threat to man and will now be given a life sentence’.
He also noted that the animal had ‘shown exceptional talent for adapting and surviving’.
The World Wildlife Fund branded the capture ‘terrible, sad news’, while environment minister Sergio Costa said he was asking national parks in Europe if they might offer the lively youngster a new home.
Brown bears were reintroduced to Italy in the late 1990s but are endangered, with population numbers thought to be around 50.
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