It was revealed today that a lion at the Dehiwala Zoo had contracted covid. Due to this, three of its herdsmen have been placed under quarantine.
Sources at the zoo said the lion had been ill for the past three days and when it was examined it was suffering from cough and sore throat.
Authorities later took a semen sample from the animal and sent it to the Veterinary and Zoological Gardens of the University of Peradeniya for further testing.
The results of the test confirmed that the lion had contracted the corona virus.
Named 'Thor', the lion has been at the Dehiwala Zoo's Lion Exhibition for the past eight years since it was brought from South Korea in 2012. The lion is on display with four other lions.
Sources at the zoo said they were conducting PCR tests with Thor on other lions on display.
Following the detection of the virus, three custodians of Thor have been quarantined by the Dehiwala Zoo authorities.
Meanwhile, zebra foam and hippopotamuses have reportedly died at the Dehiwala Zoo in the past two weeks.
Zoo officials suspect that COVID-19 compression may have been the cause of death.
The infection was revealed when the Dehiwala National Zoo was closed to visitors due to the third wave of covid spreading rapidly in the country.