The latest victim of the COVID-19 pandemic is none other than a four-year-old Malayan tiger at the Bronx Zoo in New York City. The tiger has tested positive for coronavirus, the first of its kind to do so.
The tiger in question is named Nadia. The four-year-old tiger, her sister Azul, two Amur tigers, and three African lions were reported to have developed a dry cough, a common symptom of COVID-19. Despite having a decreased appetite, the animals are “otherwise doing well under veterinary care and are bright, alert, and interactive with their keepers.”
All the animals are expected to recover.
"Our cats were infected by a person caring for them who was asymptomatically infected with the virus or before that person developed symptoms," said the Bronx Zoo.
New measures will now be adopted to protect the animals and the caretakers at the Bronx Zoo, as well as other zoos in the New York City area.
Conservation experts have warned zoos, reserves, and national parks of the “lethal threat” of coronavirus to certain animals like great apes, gorillas, chimps, and orangutans, who are particularly vulnerable to the disease.
