Lowland gorilla Eyare in a handout photo. The death of the two-year-old female at the Calgary zoo has been determined to be the result of human error.HO/The Canadian Press
Officials at the Calgary zoo say a young gorilla was killed after a worker accidentally closed a wrong door and the animal was struck in the head.
Eyare, a two-year-old female western lowland gorilla, was injured Nov. 13 at the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo while being moved to a different area in the facility.
Colleen Baird, the zoo’s director of animal care, health and welfare, says an investigation determined a staffer intended to activate a door to separate the gorilla from other members of the troop.
“A member of her care team … mistakenly activated the wrong door, resulting in Eyare being struck by the door and sustaining traumatic head injuries,” Baird told reporters at a news conference Wednesday.
Despite life-saving efforts from zoo and veterinary staff, the gorilla died.
The troop of critically endangered gorillas also included a silverback male, a young male and four adult females. They can weigh between 68 and 181 kilograms.
Eyare was born at the zoo in April 2022, the first offspring for dam Dossi and sire Jasiri.
She was injured in the back-of-house area, where staff train gorillas, feed them, and provide ultrasounds and veterinary services.
Baird declined to give any details that could identify the worker responsible for the death.
“The animal care member directly involved is devastated and mourning this loss alongside all of us. They were immediately removed from the workplace following the incident and we are providing support to them during this difficult time,” Baird said.
She said the staff member would be reassigned to another area of the zoo and undergo further training before working with animals again.
In addition to existing training, processes and policy requirements, she said the gorilla care team would also get specialized training for operating hydraulic doors.
“We are reassessing control levers, locations and designs … we’ll implement changes to improve staff ability to confirm, both visually and by touch, what animal doors they are moving,” she said.
Baird added there would also be new animal behaviour training to encourage gorillas to maintain a safe distance from doors during movement times.
She said the gorillas are very social and have been grieving the death.
“The first few days after the incident the gorillas were very quiet. We gave them lots of choices to move around as they saw fit. At times, the mother, Dossi, would spend time by herself,” Baird said.
“Since the days have progressed, we’ve seen the gorillas spend more time with Dossi, sleep with Dossi. They are supporting each other.”
In 2009, a giant capybara, a central American rodent, was crushed to death in a holding area at the zoo when a worker closed a hydraulic door.
There have also been other deaths at the zoo this year.
A seven-year-old polar bear named Baffin drowned in July in the plunge pool in his enclosure. A necropsy found his trachea was crushed by another bear while the two were engaged in rough play.
In April, the zoo announced the death of one of its mandrills – a large and colourful monkey. It said 20-year-old Yusufu died after undergoing emergency abdominal surgery.
Animal Justice, an advocacy group for the humane treatment of animals, said it’s time for a broader look at safety at the zoo.
“The Alberta government should investigate whether the zoo is complying with its license conditions, which require all equipment be installed in a way that does not present a hazard to animals,” Animal Justice executive director Camille Labchuk said in a statement.
“The use of hydraulic doors without safety mechanisms is clearly dangerous and appears to run contrary to license conditions.”
Labchuk added, “The Calgary zoo appears to have a higher rate of animal deaths compared (with) other zoos, and in light of Eyare’s death there should be a systematic review of the zoo’s operations and practices.”