Photo: Lincoln Childrens Zoo/Youtube
Three snow leopards havedied from COVID-19 complicationsat the Lincoln Children’s Zoo in Nebraska, zoo officials said in a statement on Friday.
The trio of big cats — Ranney, Everest, and Makalu —tested positive for the virusin October, according to a previous statement shared on Facebook.
“This loss is truly heartbreaking, and we are all grieving together,” the statement said.
Meanwhile, two of the zoo’s Sumatran tigers, Axl and Kumar, “have made a seemingly full recovery from their illness” after testing positive for COVID in October, according to the statement.
“Given the substantial distance between the animals and visitors, the public is not, nor has been, at any risk,” zoo officials said. “No other animals at the Zoo are showing any signs of infection.”
Snow leopards are typically found in 12 mountainous countries in central Asia, according to theWorld Wildlife Foundation. The species' population is considered vulnerable.
Lincoln Childrens Zoo/Youtube
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On Oct. 7, a 2 ½-year-old snow leoparddied at the Great Plains Zooin South Dakota after showing symptoms of COVID. The cat named Baya first exhibited symptoms one day after a tiger named Keesa “tested positive for the virus that causes COVID-19.”
Baya experienced “a rapid decline of respiratory function” before she ultimately passed away at the zoo in Sioux Falls.
Later that month,11 lions and two tigersat the Denver Zoo in Colorado tested positive for COVID.
source: people.com
