Suzi the chimpanzee dies at 34 in Nehru Zoo Park

Hyderabad: With a heavy heart and great sorrow, the Nehru Zoological Park family announced the death of its beloved Suzi the chimpanzee. Preliminary investigation revealed that Suzi could have died around 7 am to 8 am on Thursday, roughly an hour before she was found by the zoo authorities lying on the floor.

Suzi was donated by the Sahara Group CEO Subrata Roy and had captured headlines for her luxurious lifestyle.

As per the post-mortem report, all her organs appeared normal except for her heart and lungs where the symptoms indicated a massive heart stroke as the cause of death.

The chimpanzee, born on 15 July 1986, was considered family by everyone who worked at the zoo. It was a common sight to see Suzi munching on her usual intake of fruits, sprouts, juices and drinking coconut water. Suzi was the only chimpanzee in NZP Hyderabad and prior to that one chimpanzee had lived that died from a stroke in 2012 at the age of 42 years. The average life expectancy of a chimpanzee in captivity is 39 years.

With the demise of Suzi, now there are only three to four zoos in the country that have chimpanzees. With its endearing behaviour and antics, Suzi had been a favourite to zoo staff and visitors alike. She had given everyone who knew her wonderful memories to cherish and her death will leave a void in the Nehru Zoo family.