Kofi the African lion dies at Tulsa Zoo

TULSA, Okla. (AP) – The Tulsa Zoo says a male African lion that has been on exhibit at the zoo since 2004 has died.

The zoo announced Monday that Kofi died during the weekend while surrounded by his caregivers. Kofi would have turned 19 years old later this month.

The zoo’s animal care and veterinary staff had been monitoring Kofi since he was diagnosed with chronic end-stage renal disease. Kidney failure is a common cause of death in older members of the cat family, including domestic house cats.

Joe Barkowski, vice president of animal conservation and science at the zoo, says many visitors connected with Kofi during his years at the zoo and that he was very interactive with his zookeepers and the animal care staff would reserve time to sit with him.