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Heartbreaking scene at Bioparc Zoo: Grieving chimpanzee carries dead baby for three months
For the past three months, visitors to the Bioparc Zoo in Valencia, Spain, have witnessed a heartbreaking sight: a sad chimpanzee named Natalia carrying her dead baby.
The grieving chimpanzee, Natalia, holding on to her dead child. Photo Credit: REUTERS
For the past three months, visitors of the Bioparc Zoo in Valencia, Spain, have witnessed a heartbreaking sight: a sad chimpanzee named Natalia carrying her dead baby.
Natalia’s infant died barely a few days after delivery and since then, she has refused to let go of the lifeless body. This behaviour, while frightening to zoo visitors, is not altogether unusual.
Bioparc’s Director, Miguel Casares, told Reuters that such behaviour has been documented in both captive and wild chimps.
He noted that Chimpanzees, like humans, may mourn the loss of loved ones; nevertheless, Natalia’s sorrow is remarkable in terms of depth and persistence. Casares also stressed the need to respect the natural grief process.
“Our visitors, who at first are quite shocked by the sight of a dead baby, understand as soon as we explain to them why we have left it and why we keep it under observation,” he is quoted by independent.co.uk.
The report further added that this is not the first time Natalia has been faced with grief; she lost an offspring in 2018, necessitating strict surveillance by zoo personnel this time.
Chimpanzees are among Africa’s most endangered primates, with the natural population declining to between 100,000 and 200,000 as a result of poaching, habitat degradation, and disease.
