Columbus Zoo Announces Death Of Newborn Baby Giraffe

The Columbus Zoo says a baby giraffe has died just weeks after its birth.

The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium said the female calf born Oct. 30 died Saturday morning.

The zoo says the calf’s behavior and appearance began to change Friday. She was examined and treated, appeared to be stable, then died after declining rapidly.

The Columbus Dispatch reports that giraffes born in captivity have a 25 percent mortality rate. Another Columbus Zoo giraffe is expecting a calf.

A 4-year-old female giraffe died in April at the Toledo Zoo.