Beloved gorilla at Pittsburgh Zoo dies at age 33
A gorilla described as a favorite of staff and guests alike at the Pittsburgh Zoo has died.
Harry, a 33-year-old western lowland gorilla, died after a "sudden cardiac event" on Tuesday afternoon, "despite valiant immediate efforts to resuscitate him," the zoo said. Harry had been receiving treatment for cardiac disease since 2022.
Harry was the oldest male in the zoo's gorilla troop of six. Born at the Cincinnati Zoo in 1991, Harry came to Pittsburgh a year later, where he stole the hearts of staff and guests.
Kelsey Forbes, the zoo's curator of mammals, said Harry was a gentle gorilla who took quickly to becoming both a troop leader and paternal figure after Mrithi died last year.
"Harry was amazing with all of the gorilla 'kids' and was vigilant and protective with them. He was an absolutely special boy and had the best laugh of all our gorillas," Forbes said in a press release from the zoo.
Harry is the most recent animal death at the zoo. In January, a 17-year-old Masai giraffe named Sox died. A few months before that, Djembe, another beloved gorilla, died after suffering cardiac arrest during a medical procedure. The zoo says gorillas have hearts that are very similar to humans and highly susceptible to cardiac disease.
Western lowland gorillas are listed as critically endangered because their population is rapidly diminishing. Males have a median life expectancy of 32 years, the zoo says.
