15-yr-old gaur dies at Delhi zoo

A 15-year-old male gaur, a key contributor to the breeding programme at the National Zoological Park here, has died due to age-related complications, zoo officials said on Sunday.

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The gaur, also known as the Indian bison, had been under care in an enclosure for the past few days due to deteriorating health, Delhi Zoo Director Sanjeet Kumar said.

Brought from Mysore in 2014, the gaur played a significant role in increasing the zoo’s population of the species.

“At present, there are 15 gaurs at the National Zoological Park, and over 75 per cent of them are his progeny,” Kumar said, adding that samples had been collected and would be sent to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) for further analysis.

The death comes a month after two out of four Asiatic lion cubs born at the zoo died. Of the remaining two, one is with its mother Mahagauri, a five-year-old lioness, and is said to be healthy.

Established in November 1959, the Delhi Zoo currently houses 95 species of animals and birds. It received its first lion pair in 1969.