An endangered tiger obsessed with city lights escaped his Siberian exile and walked over 700 kilometres back to the place he loves.
Vladik, a rare Amur tiger, had been causing panic in the Russian Pacific capital of Vladivostok by prowling its port streets.
The feline, one of around 480 still in existence was caught after mothers expressed fears that it was too dangerous to walk their children to school.
The wild animal was sent to a 'rehabilitation centre' before being released in May into the wild in Bikin national park crammed with deer, seen as an ideal prey.
While experts believed that they had found the perfect home for him, and even made a video of his journey to freedom, the big cat, precisely a year to the day since his last appearance in Vladivostok has stunned Russian wildlife specialists by returning to the city after a 700 kilometres trek covering almost the full length of Primosky region
Wanderlust Vladik sustained himself on his epic journey by ambushing, killing and eating at least three black Himalayan bears and an unknown number of ungulates.
On his way he crossed a major motorway and also the world famous Trans-Siberian railway line.
Cheekily, he also skirted the fence of the same rehabilitation centre where he had been sent to cure his thirst for the city life.
The tiger - fitted since his capture last year with a satellite navigation tracking system on a collar - was monitored with increasing incredulity by naturalists on his escape from exile as he headed relentlessly back to Vladivostok.
His trip has culminated in Yasnoe village close to the airport in the city.
However, he has carefully shunned people and stayed away from most busy roads - at least so far. Despite this, he allowed the wildlife specialists to fleetingly glimpse him before vanishing into the taiga once more.
He now appears to have other travel plans with two countries seen as possible destinations. The most likely aim looks like China, but he could yet opt for North Korea as well.
