Rhino, who arrived at Delhi Zoo in 2024, dies

Zoo officials said they have called a team from the Indian Veterinary Research Institute at Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh to conduct the post-mortem

A one-horned male rhinoceros lodged at the National Zoological Park — informally known as the Delhi zoo — has died, zoo officials said on Thursday, adding that they are probing the cause behind the death of the 11-year-old ungulate.

Dharmendra was 11. (Courtesy: NZP)

“The rhinoceros, which was named Dharmendra, collapsed in its enclosure in the early hours of the day and was found by beat keepers. This was before visitors arrived, and the animal was shifted to the veterinary hospital, but was declared dead. The animal was healthy, so it comes as a shock, and the real reason can only be ascertained after a post-mortem,” zoo director Sanjeet Kumar said.

Zoo officials said they have called a team from the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) at Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh to conduct the post-mortem.

“As it is an unnatural death without any previous sickness history, all possible causes are being considered and an investigation is on. Experts from IVRI were called for a detailed examination and post-mortem. Anthrax was ruled out… Delhi zoo joint director Sachin Gupta has been assigned to do detailed Enquiry and submit a report,” Kumar said.

The death comes days after a nine-month-old white tiger cub died at the zoo due to “traumatic shock and acute pneumonia”.

The Delhi Zoo has over 1,000 birds and animals, including large mammals such as the leopard, lion, wolf, Asiatic elephant, and chinkara. It has over 96 different animal species in total, with the white tiger among its most popular attractions.

Dharmendra the rhinoceros was brought to the Delhi zoo from Assam in September 2024. The ungulate arrived in the Capital with a male royal Bengal tiger and a pair of pied hornbills as part of an exchange with the Assam Zoo in Guwahati, which saw the Delhi zoo send a female tiger, a blackbuck, a white buck, and a pair of blue and yellow Macaw in a trade-off.

Following a mandatory quarantine period, the rhinoceros was made available for people to view from October.

Kumar said Dharmendra was brought to the Capital in the hopes that it will mate with the existing female rhinoceros at the facility and produce an offspring. “There were no signs of fighting between the male and female rhino either. We will wait for the post-mortem to know the reason behind the death,” he said.

“The female rhino is currently showing no signs of sickness but it is kept under observation,” he said.