BRONX, New York (WABC) — The Bronx Zoo announced on Tuesday that Ntondo, a male western lowland gorilla, died over the weekend at the age of 32.
A preliminary necropsy indicates that he died of an acute cardiac event.
Ntondo, known to zoo visitors and television audiences after being featured on the Animal Planet docuseries “THE ZOO,” died on Sunday.
His story was featured in the first episode of the series in 2017 when testing revealed he had glaucoma, a condition that ultimately left him blind.
Zoo officials said even though he was blind, Ntondo “remained patient, confident and able to navigate complex social situations with the assuredness of an experienced silverback.”
Ntondo was born Feb. 28, 1993 at the Calgary Zoo and arrived to the Bronx Zoo in 2014.
He was a part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) and Species Survival Plan—a program designed to enhance the genetic diversity and demographic stability of AZA’s gorilla population.
The Bronx Zoo’s Congo Gorilla Forest is home to 12 gorillas and 53 have been born at the zoo since 1972.
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