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Hogle Zoo staffers now know how Zeya the leopard briefly escaped her enclosure, triggering a one-hour lockdown of the northeast Salt Lake City attraction.

Zoo spokeswoman Erica Hansen said the slim, 60-pound female Amur leopard found it a tight fit — but she was able to squeeze through a 6-by-6-inch opening in the exhibit's mesh canopy after first climbing up the tighter mesh fencing of her "Asian Highlands" enclosure Tuesday morning.

The enclosure's walls have only 3-by-3-inch mesh openings, while the wire-mesh openings atop the exhibit are wider to better weather snowstorms and other inclement weather, Hansen explained.

Zeya's escape, confirmed through clumps of her fur found in the canopy, was the first of its kind by any of the cats in the zoo.

"Our immediate recourse is to have the smaller cats, like Zeya, rotated into exhibits with [completely] 3-by-3 enclosures," Hansen said, noting that the larger felines — including lions and tigers — are too big to repeat the smaller leopard's escape.

"We'll be looking at ways to make longer-term adjustments [to the enclosures], too," she added.

Zeya did not stray far and did not show any aggressive behavior. Instead, with the day's heat climbing well into the mid-90s, she nestled onto a beam in a shade structure just outside her enclosure.

She was napping when spotted by a guest, who informed zoo staff. Immediately, visitors and staff were ushered into nearby buildings are part of the zoo's safety protocol.

Zeya was still asleep when a zoo security team arrived and shot her with a tranquilizer dart. Zeya woke up and began to fall from the beam, about 10 feet from the ground, but she grasped the beam with her front claws before dropping to the ground, where she then fell asleep again due to the sedative.

No one — human or animal — was injured.

On Wednesday, Zeya — a rare breed, with only an estimated 40 Amur leopards left in the wild — was "doing great," Hansen said. "She's up and awake, alert, sipping water — just fine."

Zoo veterinarians also took the opportunity to conduct a full physical exam and found her to be in good health.

Hansen said Zeya will not be back on display for at least another day or two as she continues to be monitored by the zoo's veterinary staff.

remims@sltrib.com

Twitter: @remims