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It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Kunali, the zoo’s remaining Amur tiger. He passed away peacefully in his sleep due to complications of old age. He was 19 years old and would have turned 20 in June of this year.
He and his late brother Korol were born at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in June of 2004 and arrived at the Alaska Zoo in 2008. We worked with AZA Tiger SSP (Species Survival Plan) to receive the brothers who were not in captive breeding. They came to us to live out their days together. This species is perfectly suited for Alaskan winters being native to Russia, China and Korea.
Kunali will be greatly missed by zoo staff, volunteers and the thousands of people who met him through zoo education programs. We are working with outside zoo officials to hopefully bring Amur tigers back to our facility. May you rest in peace, Kunali. You will always be in our hearts.
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