Horrifying scenes at Colchester Zoo as rhino kills zebra in front of terrified kids
Horrifying scenes at Colchester Zoo as rhino kills zebra in front of terrified kids
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A zebra has died after being attacked by a rhino in an enclosure they shared at a UK zoo. Visitors including children are said to have watched in horror at the fight between the two animals this afternoon at Colchester Zoo in Essex. Staff are also said to be "devastated" by the horror while efforts are being put towards calming other animals in the enclosure. The tragedy happened in an outside enclosure for mixed African species including zebras, rhinos, ostriches and giraffes which normally mix well together.
Colchester Zoo issued a statement saying: "At approximately 2pm today (10th Jan) there was an incident in our mixed species African habitat between a rhino and our male zebra and sadly the zebra has died. At this time we are directing our resources to make sure the rest of the animals in the habitat are settled.
"These sorts of incidents are extremely rare and we will continue to monitor the situation over the next few days. We are devastated by this loss and thank you for your understanding and support at this time.". Comments have since flooded in on the zoo's Facebook page with many sending their thoughts to the keepers who had to deal with the incident.
One person who was at the zoo today told what happened. They said: "So sad to read this. We were at the zoo today. Literally just seen the rhinos and zebras chasing as we headed inside. We were asked to make our way to the exit to clear the area, not having a clue what had happened. Staff were amazing and acted very professionally under such awful circumstances. Our thoughts are with you all.".
