13/02/2014 17:48
Second Danish zoo may kill a giraffe called Marius
A second Danish zoo has said it may have to put down one of its giraffes, despite a storm of protest after a similar move by Copenhagen Zoo, the BBC said.
The Danish Jyllands Park Zoo said that it, like the zoo in Copenhagen, would be doing so to comply with breeding programme rules.
Coincidentally, its giraffe has the same name as the Copenhagen giraffe, Marius.
Copenhagen's Marius died on Sunday despite a mass online petition.
At least two wildlife parks, including one in Britain, had offered to house the healthy two-year-old animal.
The Danish Jyllands Park Zoo, in western Denmark, said its Marius is a seven-year-old hybrid, which means he is a mix of different sub-species.
He is currently housed with a younger, pure-bred giraffe called Elmer - who happens to be the half-brother of Copenhagen's Marius.
The zoo has just joined the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA) breeding programme and is expecting to receive a female giraffe to mate with Elmer at some point.
"At the moment, there is no problem," said zoologist Jasper Moehring. "Marius is good company for Elmer and they are a wonderful attraction for our visitors.
"But the problem will be when we get a female. The two males will fight, which could result in the death of one of them," he told the BBC.
He said the zoo will get six months' notice before the arrival of the female and its priority will be to find a new home for Marius.
But he stressed that the move must not harm the carefully regulated genetic make-up of the giraffe population, otherwise Marius will have to be put down.
And he defended the decision by Copenhagen to put down its Marius on Sunday.