LOVE A GOOD April Fools Day prank? Then feast your eyes on the story of the loof lirpa, an "animal" that "escaped" from the "National Zoo" yesterday.

Reports The Post's Allison Klein:

A careless zookeeper had been distracted while the animal's enclosure was unlocked, and the 350-pound lirpa, which has "gazelle-like horns," hurtled off, according to community activist Bill Adler's posting on the Cleveland Park electronic message board.

D.C. Police Cmdr. Andy Solberg quickly weighed in, alerting residents that a department helicopter was on the case. In his e-mail to the 6,200 people on the neighborhood e-mail list, Solberg added: "If we are not successful in assisting the Zoo with finding the lirpa today, I have the utmost confidence we will probably get him tomorrow."

Not surprisingly, some people fell for it, Klein reports — especially after neighbors forwarded on the missive via e-mail and text message. Although anybody who spelled "loof lirpa" backwards cracked the pranksters' ingenious code.

Gotta love it when the police get involved in a prank. Wonder if Solberg's afraid of being labeled The Boy Who Cried "Loof"?

» "Day of the Loof Lirpa" [WaPo]

Posted by Greg Barber at 9:49 AM on April 2, 2008
Tagged in Cleveland Park , Free Ride , The District , Top Stories , Woodley Park