DNER asks for help finding owner of lemur captured in Dorado
By The Star Staff
Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER) Secretary Anaís Rodríguez Vega said Monday that the agency has initiated an investigation to determine if anyone has a special permit from the DNER to own a lemur and if the animal captured in Dorado was lost and not reported.
On Sunday, a lemur attacked a minor in the northcoast town.
Dorado emergency management personnel captured the primate and delivered it to DNER guards.
“The importation and possession of exotic species is illegal in Puerto Rico for reasons of public health and safety for people and their pets,” the DNER chief said in a written statement. “The introduction and possession of exotic animals generates an adverse impact on endemic flora and fauna.”
In 2015, the DNER levied a $2,000 fine on a person who illegally possessed two lemurs in violation of the Puerto Rico Wildlife Act (Law 241 of 1999). Officials seized the animals.
Rodríguez Vega urged citizens to call the DNER at (787) 724-5700 or (787) 230-5550 if they see an exotic, threatened or endangered animal. DNER personnel are trained to identify and handle such animals.