A MAN who was mauled to death by a tiger asked a fellow zoo visitor to take his photo before leaping into the enclosure.

Del Taylor was app­r­oached while watching from a

Aerial view of police officers investigating the tiger enclosure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park following a fatal attack.
The man who was mauled to death by a tiger asked a fellow zoo visitor to take his photo before leaping into the enclosure Credit: © YappApp
An Amur tiger walks through a grassy enclosure in front of bare trees.
Del Taylor was app­r­oached while watching 30st Altai Credit: Yorkshire Wildlife Park
A large crowd of people evacuating under a wooden structure at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
Visitors are evacuated from the park Credit: SWNS
An emergency ambulance and a police car parked outside the Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
Emergency services arrive at the scene Credit: YappApp

The man, in his early 20s, asked her: “Can you grab a shot of myself with the tiger?”

Del, who was there with her boyfriend, took the man’s phone and he posed with the five-year-old in the background.

In video footage taken by her partner, the man can be heard laughing as he excitedly pleads: “One more, one more, one more.”

He then says: “Thank you, lady.”

Visitors walking through the Land of the Tigers exhibit at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
Del was observing the big cat from a viewing platform overlooking the pen on Saturday Credit: Alamy
A tiger rests on a wooden platform at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, looking to the side with its mouth slightly open.
Del, who was there with her boyfriend, took the man’s phone and he posed with the five-year-old Siberian tiger in the background Credit: Facebook/@Yorkshire Wildlife Park

The couple left and moments later the man climbed over a metre-high viewing barrier before dropping into the enclosure.

Ms Taylor told The Sun: “He was completely alone.

“At first he was dancing on the bridge overlooking the enclosure. He ended up standing next to me.

“My partner was recording the and you can hear me having this interaction.

Visitors walking along elevated wooden pathways at Yorkshire Wildlife Park under a partly cloudy sky.
Guests hurriedly evacuate the zoo Credit: YappApp
A yellow air ambulance helicopter landed in a grassy area at Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
Helicopter arrives at the scene following the horror Credit: YappApp

“You can hear him asking for a photo. I took a couple of him with his back towards the enclosure.

“I positioned the camera so I could get Altai in it with him.”

The man landed on the grass a few feet from Altai at Yorkshire Wildlife Park, in .

Video footage captured him yelling, “No, no, no” and “Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop” as the tiger circled him before lunging for his neck.

Police officers standing at Yorkshire Wildlife Park during an emergency incident.
Police continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident Credit: SWNS
Two police vans parked outside the entrance of Yorkshire Wildlife Park.
Rangers arrived to fire warning shots and the tiger retreated to its pen Credit: © YappApp

Rangers arrived to fire warning shots and the tiger retreated to its pen.

The man died at the scene.

Some reports claimed he was using Makaton hand gestures used by people with learning difficulties as the struck.

continued to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.

Three barriers stand at the entrance to Yorkshire Wildlife Park in Doncaster.
The man was pronounced dead at the scene Credit: LNP
A statement from Yorkshire Wildlife Park addressing a tragic incident, expressing condolences to the victim's family, announcing a temporary closure, and confirming that the tiger, Altai, is safe and will not be euthanised.
A message from Yorkshire Wildlife Park Credit: Facebook/@Yorkshire Wildlife Park