Stealthy predator: Persian leopards are known for attacking their prey from behind.
The 23-year-old Chemnitz Zoo employee was cleaning a pen housing two Persian leopards when one of the big cats apparently pounced on her from behind and delivered a fatal bite to the neck.
"She died immediately," reported police spokeswoman Jana Kindt, who said the woman had wounds on her head and back. No-one had witnessed the attack, Kindt said.
The woman's body was discovered shortly after 9 a.m. by zoo manager Hermann Will while doing a routine tour of the park. He said he was shocked and shaken by the incident.
Police believe the woman, who had only recently completed her training, may have neglected to close the door latch of a cage in the rear of the animals' enclosure, which was found to be unfastened. The two leopards were supposed to be confined to the cage during cleaning.
It is the second incident of its kind to have recently occurred at Chemnitz Zoo. In 2004, a 33-year-old female keeper was badly mauled by a lion named Sultan when she entered his pen while his cage was open.
The zoo was founded in then-communist East Germany in 1964 with an initial focus on species from the Soviet Union, such as yaks, camels and tigers. Today it has around 1,700 animals belonging to over 160 different species.
The zoo's Web site explains that the leopards' favorite quarry is dogs, which they "prefer over almost all other kinds of prey." Its description of the animals' stealth is eerily prescient. "The cautious big cats rarely take their chances with a real fight," it reads. "A leap and a well-placed bite to the throat is enough for most prey."
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