15-yr-old leopard dies at Delhi zoo from old age: Officials

Babli is the latest in a string of casualties reported from the Delhi zoo over the past fortnight. Two other animals -- jaguar and a nilgai -- had also died of old-age related deaths recently, zoo officials had said

A 15-year-old female leopard, called Babli, at the Delhi zoo, died on Wednesday morning of old-age related complications, zoo officials said, adding that the animal was not eating much since the past few days and was under treatment at the zoo veterinary hospital.

The Delhi zoo, established in November 1959, houses over 96 species of different animals and birds and is considered the ”model” zoo for the country. (FILE)

Babli is the latest in a string of casualties reported from the Delhi zoo over the past fortnight. Two other animals -- jaguar and a nilgai -- had also died of old-age related deaths recently, zoo officials had said. The 15-year-old nilgai was undergoing treatment for age-related issues and died on February 13, while the 22-year-old jaguar was also under prolonged treatment and intensive care before eventually dying on February 19.

Sanjeet Kumar, director, Delhi zoo, confirmed Babli’s death and said the animal was under treatment and died at the zoo hospital on Wednesday morning. “It was not eating much. The animal was 15 and had old-age related issues. The normal life span of a leopard in the wild is around 10 to 12 years and in captivity, between 15 to 18 years,” Kumar said, adding that the animal’s samples have been collected during the postmortem examination, which will be sent to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute in Bareilly for further analysis.

The zoo now has two male and a female leopard left. The director said efforts were already ongoing to get more leopards from other zoos through animal exchange programmes. “We had already held talks with two zoos in the country to bring leopards here, as two of our leopards were old. One of them has now died,” he said.

The leopard Babli was brought to the Delhi zoo in 2018 as part of an animal exchange programme with Nandan Van Zoo in Raipur.

The zoo has seen a spate of animal deaths in recent months. Previously, on January 25, a female Sangai deer died after a fight with a male counterpart. The same month, a nilgai also sustained injuries after a fight.

On January 2, a one-horned rhinoceros, Dharmendra, died in mysterious circumstances, officials had said, adding that the rhinoceros was brought from the Assam zoo as part of an animal exchange programme.

On December 28 last year, a nine-month-old white tiger cub succumbed to “traumatic shock and acute pneumonia”, zoo officials had said.

The Delhi zoo, established in November 1959, houses over 96 species of different animals and birds and is considered the ”model” zoo for the country.