Born on Christmas Eve of 2023, Zoo Atlanta’s beloved southern white rhino, Zuri, has tragically passed away this past week, following a brief illness.
ATLiens might remember helping name this sweet baby rhino back in 2024, settling on Zuri, a name of Swahili origin which can mean “beautiful.”
Keep scrolling to learn more about this tragic news. Our hearts are with the team at Zoo Atlanta.
What happened to Zuri?
The Zoo posted on Instagram that Zuri had a brief illness, during which her care team did everything they could to care for her.
Zoo Atlanta stated on November 8th,
Zuri experienced a sharp decline in her health and behavior earlier this week, and blood tests revealed severe anemia. Our Veterinary Team immediately administered extensive treatments, including an emergency blood transfusion using compatible blood from adult female Dakari and blood donated from other AZA facilities. Despite the team’s quick work and intensive care, Zuri continued to decline and died on November 6.
Of course, the whole team at Zoo Atlanta, especially Zuri’s care team, are just devastated by her tragic loss.
Sam Rivera, DVM, Vice President of Animal Health said in a statement,
This is a devastating loss for the Zoo Atlanta team. The loss of Zuri is crushing not only because she was such a young animal who was treasured as an individual, but also because she was an incredibly valuable member of her vulnerable species. While it is too early for us to presume on any specific cause, we are hopeful that pathology reports will tell us more about Zuri’s condition.
What about the other rhinos at Zoo Atlanta?
Zoo Atlanta stated,
The Rhino Care Team continues to closely monitor Kiazi and Zuri’s ‘aunt’ Dakari, with whom Zuri spent most of her time, and is providing them with extra care following the loss of their daughter and herd-mate.
Of course, our hearts are with the other rhinos in Zuri’s herd right now, too.
You can learn more about Zoo Atlanta on their website, here.