Malaga's mysterious wild animals, often talked about but never found

An orangutan prowling around the wine presses on the slopes of Santo Pítar or a puma that jumped on the bonnet of a car on a road in the Serranía de Ronda's Genal valley. These are two examples of the local legends that are told, but for which there is no proof in the villages of Malaga province. Some of the stories have even made it into the newspapers. There are also, in some cases, photographs or videos taken by witnesses, but the animals were never found. Here are some examples...

It is not known for sure in which year there was panic over a large primate in the area around El Borge in the Axarquía, but it was a long time ago. So long ago in fact that there were not even television sets in Spanish homes. Today it remains a legend, as there was no trace of the orangutan which, according to the story, lurked among the farmhouses and wine presses near Santo Pítar, the peak which once belonged to El Borge and which today forms part of Malaga city.

The rumour of the existence of an orangutan in the area gave rise to a joke by a local man, who decided to dress up in goats' skins to scare partygoers at the wine press it was said to have been spotted near. Nothing has ever been found of the primate, although there are those who maintain that it was really a young man from the area who decided to dress up so that a secret affair he was having with a neighbour would not be discovered.

In the spring of 2002, in the idyllic landscape of this area of the Serranía de Ronda, some locals claimed to have seen a large feline. Testimonies from locals in villages such as Atajate or Benadalid and even Jimera de Líbar, in the adjoining Guadiaro valley, made Spain's environment agency and Seprona (the Guardia Civil's nature protection unit) investigate. It was said that the wild animal, which, according to the definition given by those who claimed to have seen it, could have been a puma, had killed a foal and several sheep and goats.

Someone claimed that it had jumped on the bonnet of his car on a dark night. There was speculation that it had escaped from an animal park or even from a private individual who held it in captivity. But after many weeks of searching, no trace of the animal was found. Little by little it was no longer talked about, although some people used humour to remember it. In a hotel in Júzcar they even made a statue which stood at the entrance of the establishment.

In the first days of autumn 2007 the residents of Los Claveles residential area in the centre of La Cala de Mijas were also startled after hearing the testimonies of some residents who claimed to have seen with their own eyes and even photographed with their mobiles a black panther. One resident claimed that he had seen it in a tree in the area, which led him to believe that it was not a dog but a feline. Local police and Guardia Civil officers searched the area, but again there was no sign of it. There was speculation that the animal had escaped from an owner who had it in captivity illegally, but it was never found. There were not even footprints or other traces of the alleged wild animal's passage.

Before the end of 2007, just before the December long weekend, an ornithology enthusiast claimed he'd seen a large snake in the natural area of the Desembocadura del Guadalhorce. Logic led him to think that it was a 'bastard snake', which is native to the area, but the colours and even the size of the animal made him doubt. For this reason, he photographed and even videotaped its presence a day later. This was also corroborated by a professional ornithologist.

The images left the experts in no doubt. It was an Indian python, a snake that could perfectly well feed on water rats or coots in the Desembocadura del Guadalhorce natural area, although it was not its place. Someone could have abandoned it there. The news caused panic among many parents in the Guadalmar residential area, as the place where the animal was seen and recorded was only a few metres from the local primary school. Despite a thorough search of the area for the animal, it was never seen or found again.

Once again, a large feline in the Genal Valley. Eighteen years after residents of this area of the Serranía de Ronda claimed to have seen a puma, a German tourist said he saw another one, but this time of smaller size and native to the area, an Iberian lynx. It is true that many decades ago this wild animal may have formed part of the ecosystem of areas such as the Genal valley, but not even the graphic evidence shown by the German visitor managed to convince many experts. It was not even ruled out that this possible lynx might have passed through the area, at a time when it had experienced the first confinement due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In fact, in some mountain ranges in Cadiz it was also claimed to have been seen. This animal is known for its ability to travel long distances. On this occasion, the place where the German tourist claimed to have recorded the animal is a spot located between Faraján and the old Fábrica de Hojalata, now converted into an organic wine cellar, in the municipality of Júzcar. After the initial commotion about the possible sighting of the animal, there have been no further indications of it passing through the area.

* There are several wild animals that have been seen and found in the province of Malaga in recent years, such as a crocodile found dead in the Las Lagunas area of Mijas or a boa constrictor captured by agents of the Seprona nature protection group in the Campanillas district of Malaga.