Dublin Zoo has announced the death of 45-year-old orangutan Sibu, who had been at the zoo for the last four decades.
In a post on X, the zoo said everyone is "devastated by the loss of Sibu, who has been an iconic figure at the Zoo since he first arrived 40 years ago this year".
Dublin Zoo is deeply saddened to announce that Sibu, our beloved male orangutan, has died. He was 45 years old. Everyone in Dublin Zoo is devastated by the loss of Sibu, who has been an iconic figure at the Zoo since he first arrived 40 years ago this year. pic.twitter.com/0GwgyrNa4K
— Dublin Zoo (@DublinZoo) February 29, 2024
It described the great ape as "gentle, caring and highly intelligent".
Dublin Zoo said he formed strong bonds with the zoo keepers and "his absence will be felt by the whole team, and undoubtedly by the millions of visitors who were fortunate enough to see him over the years".
On its website, it said: "Sibu had been showing symptoms consistent with an age-related cardiac and respiratory condition for the last number of weeks.
"His ongoing condition disimproved and necessitated an in-depth assessment for further medical management.
"Our veterinarians together with a multidisciplinary team of specialists confirmed in this assessment that Sibu had progressive cardiac disease, however we are sad to report that Sibu passed away during this procedure. We are awaiting the results of a post-mortem report."
