Search Exotic Incidents Database

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Officials from the Indianapolis Zoo have confirmed the two tortoises that were reported stolen earlier this month have been found. The Indiana State Police, who were leading the investigation into the missing tortoises, said the tortoises were found safe and uninjured Tuesday afternoon in Falls Park, which is located in the Madison County city of Pendleton.

According to the Pendleton Police Department, the office received a call around 4 p.m. from a park visitor who came across an unattended cardboard box behind the park’s museum near the falls. Officials said the box reportedly had a paper plate with a note referencing the Indianapolis Zoo. The visitors found the tortoises inside the box.

Zoo personnel confirmed these were the missing tortoises by scanning their microchips. This incident remains under investigation.

AKRON, OH – The Akron Zoo announced the death of one of their lions Thursday. Tamarr was 20 years old, according to the zoo, and had a sharp decline in health over the last few days.“The difficult decision was made to humanely euthanize him,” the zoo said in a statement, adding that staff was “heartbroken.” Tamarr was the second oldest male at the zoo. Tamarr was born on August 25, 2005, at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado. The Akron Zoo will work with the African Lion Species Survival Plan (SSP) for recommendations for Tamarr’s bonded companion, Mandisa.

KANSAS CITY, MO – Lois, an African elephant who lived at the Kansas City Zoo and Aquarium for over 40 years, has died. Zookeepers said Lois had been facing increasing challenges with movement in recent weeks and had stopped responding to treatment within the last week. She was euthanized on Tuesday at the age of 47.

PITTSBURGH, PA – The operator and head of the Pittsburgh Zoo is facing a lawsuit filed by a Washington, D.C.-based animal rights nonprofit, Nonhuman Rights Project, which is asking for the release of the zoo’s elephants from captivity.

The lawsuit alleges that the elephants’ space at the Pittsburgh Zoo is “grossly inadequate.” It urges the court to release the animals to a sanctuary or consider them as a candidate for rewilding. Pittsburgh Zoo currently houses five elephants; Angeline, Victoria, and Zuri were all born into captivity at the zoo, and Savanna and Tasha, who were wild African Savannah elephants removed from their herds.

This past week, the zoo announced plans to improve herd dynamics and care for its elephants, saying sisters Victoria and Zuri will soon be heading to the zoo’s Conservation Center in Somerset County. “The Nonhuman Rights Project has submitted a habeas corpus petition demanding the right to liberty for five elephants held captive in the Pittsburgh Zoo. Leading experts in elephant cognition and behavior support this lawsuit. The elephants are suffering and need to be freed.”

SALINA, KS – The Rolling Hills Zoo in Salina shared that their female Amur tiger, Andrea, died on Tuesday. In a Facebook post, the zoo said that Andrea had been under observation by their animal care team and veterinary staff for the past several months due to her advanced age. Andrea was 17 years old. The zoo mentioned that Amur tigers generally live 10 to 15 years in the wild, but can live longer under human care.

The zoo said her quality of life was declining and the team made the decision to euthanize Andrea to allow her “comfort and dignity in her final moments.” Originally born in the Saint Louis Zoo in 2008, Andrea joined Rolling Hills Zoo in 2016 following a breeding recommendation by the AZA Species Survival Plan. While at Rolling Hills Zoo, Andrea gave birth to three cubs. These tigers are critically endangered in the wild.

PITTSBURGH, PA – An Ohio man who markets himself as a social media influencer is facing felony charges after police say he jumped a fence leading to an elephant enclosure at the Pittsburgh Zoo. Nineteen year-old Noah Thomas, of Austintown, is accused of sneaking into the zoo and then entering into an elephant enclosure, according to a criminal complaint filed Thursday. Police say the elephant charged at Thomas, ramming the gate and attempted to strike Thomas with its trunk. Thomas reportedly jumped out of the enclosure to escape the animal.

A video of the incident was posted on Sept. 22 and was also cited in the criminal complaint as the account belonging to Thomas. Police say that at the time the video at the Pittsburgh Zoo was recorded, there were about 25 or more adults and children in the elephant barn, and several of those people reported the incident to staff at the zoo.

Security found Thomas and a woman who was with him in the zoo’s aquarium. They were reportedly escorted off of the premises. Thomas is charged with causing or risking catastrophe, criminal trespass and conspiracy, third-degree felony charges; recklessly endangering another person and cruelty to animals, second-degree misdemeanors; and theft of services.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA – A San Bernardino family reunited with their pet python after she was found in an In-N-Out drive-thru nearly 50 miles away from their home.  Henny, the 4-year-old python, went missing from Vanessa Navarro’s San Bernardino home seven weeks ago.

“We were outside doing yard work, and my boyfriend, Abraham, fell over and he used her cage to stop himself, and the top popped off. The screen part. We thought we had secured it when we left her there that night,” she said.” Henny slithered out of the screen and disappeared until the Pasadena Humane Society recovered the python lying around an In-N-Out drive-thru in Monrovia. The shelter posted a picture of Henny, and Navarro immediately recognized her.

Navarro said it’s a bit of a mystery how Henny arrived at the In-N-Out, but believes she could have wrapped herself under a truck. “I think she hitchhiked on somebody’s car,” Navarro said.