The tiger that mauled a man to death Saturday after he entered its enclosure at a wildlife park in Yorkshire, northern England, was brought to the facility from Norway last year. In a new statement released Sunday, the park identified the animal involved in the incident as Altai, a Siberian tiger belonging to an endangered species.
Zoo officials also confirmed that Altai would not be euthanized following the tragedy, adding that the tiger was "safe and healthy," according to British media reports. The victim's identity has not yet been released.
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Altai, a Siberian tiger, was brought to the UK from Norway a year ago
(Photo: Yorkshire Wildlife Park)
Visitors who saw the man, who apparently arrived at the wildlife park alone, said he had been dancing and appeared cheerful about 20 minutes before the tiger killed him. British media reported that in a video posted online, the man could be heard approaching a female visitor and asking, "Excuse me, could you take a picture of me with the tiger?"
In the background, Altai could be seen lying beneath a shady tree, playing with a fallen branch. The woman agreed, and the man later asked her to take three more photographs. Finally, he told her, "Thank you, madam."
At least 20 people witnessed the horrifying incident. Ella Ford, 24, from the town of Moreton on the Wirral, was visiting the park with her partner and had filmed the tiger just minutes before the attack. She told the BBC that she had seen a man near the tiger enclosure "pacing back and forth with headphones in his ears." A few minutes later, she noticed that the same man had "climbed over the barriers."
According to Ford, a woman was standing nearby and speaking to him before "he jumped in and crawled in front of the tiger, where the tiger was lying, and just lay there."
Ford said she then saw the tiger grab the man, who she said was "screaming for help."
A photo said to be of the incident at Yorkshire Wildlife Parkרית
(Photo: From social networks Section 27A)
Another eyewitness told the Mail on Sunday that the man, who was holding a cellphone and wearing AirPods, appeared to be "psyching himself up" by performing a kind of "dance" in the visitor viewing area before climbing over the fence.
In footage circulated online, the man, believed to have been in his 20s, can be seen as Altai circles him before striking him on the back with a paw and violently shaking him like a rag doll.
During the attack, the man appeared to attempt to scold the tiger by clenching his fist and moving his little finger. The gesture prompted speculation that he was trying to communicate with the animal using Makaton.
Makaton is a distinctive communication system, separate from sign language, that combines hand gestures, pictures and speech. It is often used by people who have difficulty expressing themselves.
Users on X were quick to point out the possible meaning of the gesture. One wrote that the man was "using Makaton here, pointing with his little finger while holding his hand in a fist, to say 'bad.'"
Yorkshire Wildlife Park opened in 2009, while its "Land of the Tigers" enclosure opened in 2011. The park is home to two Siberian tigers: a female named Chuna and Altai, who arrived in February 2025 from Dyreparken Zoo in Norway, where he was born.
Siberian tigers are endangered, with an estimated 500 remaining in the wild.
This article includes videos and images used under Section 27A of Israel’s Copyright Law.