Central Florida zoo mourns loss of beloved giraffe after long battle with illness

SANFORD, Fla. — The Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens is mourning the loss of one the stars if its Giraffe Feeding area, Rafiki.

▶ WATCH CHANNEL 9 EYEWITNESS NEWS

The 13-year-old male giraffe died on Oct. 30 after a long battle with chronic illness.

Rafiki had just celebrated his birthday on Oct. 22.

Read: Troopers share important safety tips for Halloween

The Reticulated giraffe helped open the zoo’s giraffe habitat in 2014, where he was joined by a Masai giraffe, Gage, and a Rothschild giraffe, Emba, who died in 2018.

Rafiki touched the lives of many people, including his keepers, volunteers, and guests alike, introducing individuals and families to his gentle species with an up-close-and-personal experience, zoo officials said.

Over the last several years, the zoo’s team of keepers, veterinarians, and Association of Zoo and Aquariums (AZA) experts worked tirelessly to monitor and treat Rafiki’s condition.

Read: ‘Quite a gut punch’: How one woman found gratitude through a breast cancer diagnosis

Giraffes have faced a “silent extinction” with a 40% decline in population over recent generations, officials said.

Rafiki was an important part of the Species Survival Plan (SSP), an AZA conservation program in which participating zoos and aquariums work to maintain “a genetically diverse population of an endangered or threatened species in human care that could be used to replenish populations in their native habitat if needed someday.”

Guests are still welcome to visit and feed Gage during their time at the Zoo.

Officials ask that guests be patient with Gage and with zoo staff as they all adjust to this loss.

Photos: Halloween costume roundup

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.

©2024 Cox Media Group