One of oldest gorillas dies at Longleat Safari Park
Nico, one of the world’s oldest silverback gorillas, has died at Longleat Safari Park. The 56-year-old great ape passed away in his sleep. He spent most of his life at the park in Wiltshire, the UK, after arriving from Switzerland in the 1980s, metro.co.uk reported.
Staff celebrated his birthday in July, giving him a cake with carrot candles — but they were unsure of his exact age and said there was a likelihood he may have been older than 56.
A spokeswoman for Longleat said on Facebook: “Everyone here has been truly saddened by the death of Nico.
“His main keeper has been working with Nico virtually on a daily basis since 1989 and has forged an extraordinarily close bond with him.
“It goes without saying that he is particularly devastated by the loss along with the rest of his keeping team who have cared for Nico over the years.”
The gorilla, who once tipped the scales at 34 stone, lived on his own island in the middle of a lake at Longleat in a purpose built, centrally-heated house, complete with classical pillars and his own television.
He also had a series of lookout stations and giant tree trunk climbing frames where he could sit and watch the antics of the nearby colony of three younger gorillas — brothers Kesho, Evindi and Alf.
The oldest male gorilla in the world lives in the US and was born in 1961 while the oldest female, who also lives in America, was born in 1956.