Advertisement

National Zoo euthanizes rare monkey

WASHINGTON, May 7 (UPI) -- The National Zoo euthanized a rare Sulawesi macaque suffering from spondylosis, a painful spinal condition, zoo officials announced Thursday.

The 35-year-old female macaque, a cousin to the Rhesus monkley, came to Washington in 1995 and had been receiving medication but grew ill in recent days, the Washington Post reported. The macaque was euthanized April 26, but the zoo's public affairs office did not learn of its death until Tuesday.

Advertisement

Sulawesi macaques, native to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, are a critically endangered species. They live 18 to 25 years in the wild but can live as long as 40 years in captivity. About 5,000 of the monkeys remain in the wild; about 100 are in zoos.

Latest Headlines