2 Emperor Tamarin Monkeys Disappear From Dallas Zoo After 'Suspicious' Death Of Exotic Vulture

A Texas zoo that has been experiencing a series of mysterious occurrences — including the suspicious death of an endangered vulture, the escape of a clouded leopard and "intentionally cut" holes in animal enclosures — reported Monday that two emperor tamarin monkeys under its care were nowhere to be found.

Officials of Dallas Zoo contacted police after noticing that the monkeys were missing, with their habitat "intentionally compromised," Insider reported.

The Dallas Police Department is currently investigating the case.

Following a search around the monkey habitat and zoo grounds, the zoo officials concluded that although the species are prone to stay close to their enclosure, they disappeared without a trace — an occurrence that implies they were stolen.

The zoo further backed their claim, saying a hole in the emperor tamarin monkeys' habitat was similar to the one discovered in the clouded leopard's enclosure on Jan. 13. The leopard, named Nova, was later found sleeping on a tree branch and was restored back to its cage.

The incident was followed by the death of the zoo's beloved lapped-faced vulture named Pin under mysterious circumstances. The caregivers were heartbroken over losing Pin, one of the only 27 lappet-faced vultures currently left in the U.S. and which was under the zoo's possession for the last 33 years, siring 11 offspring during its lifetime.

"Deaths are always difficult. But this is especially challenging. There's a good chance lappet-faced vultures could move to critically endangered or even go extinct in our lifetime," Harrison Edell, Dallas Zoo's executive vice president for animal care and conservation, said following Pin's death, as per CBS News.

The zoo also said at the time that they ramped up surveillance around the property with more CCTV cameras and overnight patrolling. "We will continue to implement and expand our safety and security measures to whatever level necessary to keep our animals and staff safe," the zoo reportedly said in a news conference.

The latest incident in the zoo comes as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service continues its investigation into the death of Pin and as the zoo offers a $10,000 reward for anyone who comes up with information about the culprits, CBS News reported.