Giraffe popular for heart mark on neck dies at Nagoya zoo

NAGOYA — A popular giraffe at Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens known for a heart mark on her neck died on March 10, the zoo announced.

The reticulated giraffe, Mao, was aged 16. When she was in the early stages of pregnancy in May 2023, the condition of her right hind leg worsened. On the morning of March 10, she became unable to stand up, causing repression of her respiratory organs, resulting in her death.

With Mao’s death, there are now just three reticulated giraffes remaining at the zoo in Nagoya’s Chikusa Ward: one male and two females.

(Japanese original by Keisuke Ota, Gifu Bureau)