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"Petal, 52, the oldest African elephant in an American zoo, and a resident of the Philadelphia Zoo for more than a half-century, died this morning. Tests are being conducted to determine the cause of death and results are expected over the next few weeks.

Dr. Andrew Baker, Vice President for Animal Programs, said Zoo elephant care staff arriving shortly before 7 a.m. were alarmed when they found Petal, who typically slept standing up, lying in her stall on her right side . Veterinarians and other animal care staff were immediately called. The team attending Petal tried for nearly two hours to comfort her and to help her to her feet. She died at approximately 9:15am.

“It is too early to know exactly what happened, but it would appear after viewing our in-stall video monitoring system that Petal’s right rear leg buckled suddenly early this morning, causing her to collapse”, explained Baker. “Petal had been in excellent health through her years at the Zoo, showing no recent signs of illness or decline. We will know much more in the days ahead.”

Petal lived with two other African elephants, Kallie, 25, and Bette, 24. “Our elephant care staff will continue to monitor Kallie and Bette as they both had close bonds with Petal.”

“Petal will be warmly remembered by staff and generations of Zoo visitors as one of our most beloved animals. This is a great loss to the Philadelphia Zoo family and the greater Philadelphia community”, said Zoo CEO Vikram H. Dewan. “She was a great ambassador for the endangered and threatened wild elephants of Africa and Asia. She will be missed.”'

Philadelphia Zoo - Philadelphia Zoo Says Good-bye to Petal, the African Elephant