Covid19 – Lion tests positive in Sri Lanka’s main zoo

The head of the National Zoological Gardens here said that they are in touch with India’s Central Zoo Authority to treat an 11-year-old lion named ‘Thor’ who has tested positive.

“We are in regular touch with the Central Zoo Authority of India and following their instructions on taking preventive measures to prevent the staff and other animals in the zoo being infected. We continue to treat the lion while keeping him in isolation,” Director General Ishini Wickremesinghe said in a statement.

Thor had been experiencing breathing difficulties and refused food, prompting authorities at the Dehiwala Zoo, near the Sri Lankan capital, to test it for coronavirus. Wickremesinghe said several PCR tests were carried out to confirm that the lion had contracted the virus after an initial antigen test result was negative.

In India at least two lions have reportedly died of Covid-19 this month the first being a nine-year-old lioness at a Tamil Nadu zoo. Sri Lanka has banned travellers from India to prevent a more virulent strain of Covid-19 entering the nation as it battles a third wave of infections.