Monday 3 March 2014

Famed Milwaukee County Zoo orangutan's death caused by strange infection

Date:
February 27, 2014

Source:
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Summary:
Mahal, the young orangutan who became a star of the Milwaukee County Zoo and an emblem of survival for a dwindling species, led an extraordinary life. It turns out, the young ape died an extraordinary death, too. Rejected by his biological mother at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs, Colo., and eventually flown to Milwaukee aboard a private jet to live with a surrogate mother, Mahal became one of the Milwaukee County Zoo's star attractions. His unexpected death at age 5 in late December 2012 was a shock to the community. Now, thanks to cutting-edge genetic diagnostics, a team of researchers has documented the cause of Mahal's death, identifying a species of tapeworm unknown to science and newly recognized as a threat to primates.


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