Lara, the wild cat dubbed the Beast of Barnet, may be off to warmer climes in the quest for the lynx of her dreams.

The young female has been recovering in London Zoo ever since she was captured in a Childs Hill garden last year. But if the path of true love is to run smooth, she will have to be a lady of some breeding. Zoo officials are now busy trying to discover if she is a pure-bred European lynx. If so, then Lara will be swept off to mate with a suitable European male in a lynx breeding programme on the Continent.

A London Zoo spokeswoman confirmed: "We've taken blood samples from her and are sending them off to Europe to see if she's a pure-bred European lynx.

"If her genetic make-up shows she is, then a more suitable home will be found for her so she can be used for breeding purposes."

Sadly for Lara, if she is not pure bred she will have to remain lovelorn in London for the time being. She is currently the only lynx in the zoo's big cat enclosure.

Lara created chaos when armed police officers, London Zoo officials, an RSPCA team and a vet attempted to capture her following a chance sighting in Hocroft Avenue, Childs Hill, in May.

It took them four hours to corner the mammal in a stairway leading to Avenue Court flats in neighbouring Farm Road after she tried to escape by jumping over a garden fence.

The RSPCA said her owner has never been found. It is an offence to hold an animal of this kind without a licence under the Government-enforced Dangerous Wild Animal's Act.

In September 1998 South Mimms and Potters Bar residents had to lock themselves in their homes as police scoured the area looking for a beast which had also been seen around Brookmans Park. Whether it was Lara or not is open to conjecture.

Lara is now on show to the public but only for very short periods during the day as she is very shy. For information call London Zoo on 020 7722 3333.