Gibbon at Santa Barbara Zoo dies in accident

The Santa Barbara Zoo announced that one of their beloved animals died in an accident Thursday morning.

Jari, a 5-year-old white-handed gibbon, was found not breathing, with her head tangled in a net in her exhibit. She was found by a keeper at around 10:45 a.m.

Zoo officials say the type of net is commonplace in exhibits for primates that climb. The net is meant for enrichment according to Dr. Julie Barnes, Vice President of Animal Care & Health.

“This happened shortly after Jari went out on exhibit this morning. I was on the scene within minutes of her being found by her keeper. We rushed Jari to the Animal Hospital and attempted to revive her, but we were unsuccessful,” Dr. Barnes said in a news release.

Barnes says the death of Jari is a tragic accident. The zoo has sent a report to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which oversees licensed exhibitors that hold animals, and to the Association of Zoos & Aquariums’ Accreditation Commission.

Jari was five and a half years old. She was born in November 2013 at the Jackson Zoo in Mississippi. She was hand-raised by keepers after she was abandoned by her mother. She moved to Springfield, Illinois to live at the Henson Robinson Zoo with an elderly female gibbon.

When the elderly gibbon died she was brought to the Santa Barbara Zoo in January 2017. Jari was paired with Jasmine, an elderly gibbon at the zoo who lost her longtime mate in July 2016.

“The two got along immediately and Jari has been an absolute joy for both our staff and visitors,” said Dr. Barnes. “As you can imagine, her keepers and the entire Zoo family are incredibly upset. She was an amazing young gibbon who was doing so well being fostered by Jasmine.”

Jasmin, who is 41 years old, is still at the zoo. Officials will work with the AZA to find a suitable companion for her in the future.

Another gibbon died at the zoo in December. Nikkon had been at the zoo less than a month when a mass was found in his upper abdomen. The 35-year-old gibbon was meant to be a companion to Jari and Jasmine.