Residents in Johor Baru are up in arms on news that a male black panther has escaped from a zoo and was on the loose in the city, a report said today.

The panther has been missing from a zoo here since Thursday and its trackers have been issued a "shoot to kill" order, The Star said.

Residents have been warned to keep away from the vicinity of the zoo.

A source was quoted as saying the animal would not attack unless provoked but it has been more than a day since its last meal and hunger could agitate the panther.

Search operations were expected to be stepped up at night as the animal was usually active in the dark and liked to stay on top of trees.

The newspaper said authorities were puzzled at how the panther could have escaped from a compound surrounded by a six-metre concrete wall with steel bars on top.

There were scratch marks on the wall but the panther's mate was safe in a cage within the same compound.

The daily said the authorities were considering the possibility that the panther, a protected species, had been stolen for sale in the black market.