Animal world Elephant cow Heri dies at Basel Zoo
Basel Zoo is mourning the loss of its elephant cow Heri. The animal, which was born around 1976, was euthanized on Wednesday, the zoo announced. Heri's health had increasingly deteriorated in recent weeks.
11.06.2025, 16:34
SDA
Despite maintaining a good appetite, Heri had lost a significant amount of weight over the past few weeks. She had also been suffering from progressive muscle atrophy and was hardly moving at all. Basel Zoo has therefore decided to euthanize her.
According to the press release, Heri (49) is a wild animal from the Kruger National Park in South Africa. Her exact age is not known, but she was probably born around 1976. The zoo assumes that she was around 49 years old at the time of her death. African elephants live to be 41 years old on average.
In 1979, Hanover Zoo brought Heri to Europe, as she would otherwise have been shot in her native South Africa due to population regulation. Heri moved to Basel in 1988.
Suffered a miscarriage
Heri was pregnant at the end of 2023, but the calf died in the womb. She was in a critical condition afterwards, but recovered. The father of the dead foetus was the bull elephant Tusker, who also had to be put down in August 2023 due to tuberculosis.
After Heri's euthanasia, the two elephants Rosy and Maya will be given the opportunity to say goodbye to her. The elephant house will remain closed until further notice.
Basel Zoo has announced that it intends to reorganize its elephant husbandry following the death of matriarch Heri. The two cows Rosy and Maya, with whom there are always tensions, are to be given up. The future composition of the breeding group at the zoo will be decided in the coming months.
