Zoo Atlanta heartbroken over loss of white rhino Zuri
This weekend, Zoo Atlanta’s rhino team said goodbye to a beloved member of their family.
The zoo announced that Zuri, a 2-year-old female southern white rhino, died Friday after a brief illness.
In a statement released via Facebook, the zoo revealed that earlier in the week, Zuri was experiencing a sudden decline in health, with blood tests showing signs of “severe anemia.” Zoo Atlanta’s vet team attempted several treatments, including an emergency blood transfusion, but were unable to save her.
“This is a devastating loss for the Zoo Atlanta team,” the zoo’s vice president of animal health Sam Rivera said in a statement.
It was a bittersweet day for Zoo Atlanta, which was also celebrating the arrival of their new giant pandas. The first-ever southern white rhino calf born at the zoo, Zuri’s death left officials “heartbroken” because of its larger ramifications.
“The loss of Zuri is crushing not only because she was such a young animal who was treasured as an individual, but also because she was an incredibly valuable member of her vulnerable species,” Rivera said.
Southern white rhinos are listed as Near Threatened by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Despite the moniker, they’re not actually white. According to Zoo Atlanta, the name may come the Afrikaans word wyd, which translates to “wide.”
Of the five rhino species, they’re the largest. Southern white rhinos can be more susceptible to poachers because they travel in herds, which makes spotting them easier.
The zoo has been supporting white rhino conservation efforts in Namibia through their partnership with the International Rhino Foundation.
Zuri was a Christmas Eve eve baby, the first child of mother Kiazi and father Mumbles. Her name was picked from 4,000 submissions as part of what the zoo dubbed “Rhino Naming Madness.” It means “beautiful” in Swahili.
At the time, she was only the second rhino calf born at Zoo Atlanta in 134 years.
The rhino team will continue to keep tabs on Kiazi, and Zuri’s “aunt” Dakari. The trio spent most of their time together, and it was Dakari’s blood that was used in transfusion efforts to save her niece.
It’s not clear what caused Zuri’s rapidly diminishing health.
Rivera said further testing may provide answers. A necropsy will be performed as part of Zoo Atlanta’s partnership with University of Georgia’s Zoo and Exotic Animal Pathology Service.
“While it is too early for us to presume on any specific cause, we are hopeful that pathology reports will tell us more about Zuri’s condition,” he said.