A lioness has reportedly killed a zookeeper while feeding her lunch in Iran.

The female then fled with her male companion and prowled around the zoo for several hours.

Both animals were later captured after a combined operation by police and guard.

The incident on Sunday left a 40-year-old guard dead around less than 150 miles southwest of Tehran.

He was identified only by his family name Esfandani and is said to have been putting meat through a feeding window when the two lions managed to open their cage.

An unnamed zoo employee in in the city of Arak, Markazi province, explained that the two animals then escaped.

He told state broadcaster IRIB: 'The lioness, which has been in the zoo for several years, managed to open a door of the cage, get out and then attack the 40-year-old guard who had just brought food to the pair of felines'.

One of two lions that killed a guard at the Arak Zoo, about 200 kilometres southwest of Iran's capital.
The male lion also escaped the zoo in Iran while the pair were being fed (Picture: AFP)

Both animal were then recaptured alive, the state news agency IRNA quoted the governor of the province as saying.

Amir Hadi said: 'Immediately after the incident, security forces took control of the zoo.

'Efforts to capture the two felines alive have been successful'.

Authorities are investigating the case.

Such incidents are rare in Iran and around the world and are often blamed on poor safety measures and inadequate emergency services.