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Poisoning suspected in sudden death of 39 stingrays at Calgary Zoo

  2. jefftego
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The Calgary Zoo suspects the 39 cownose rays that have mysteriously died in recent days were poisoned.

"This is a huge tank, so something substantial had to have been put in ... we don't know if it was a powder or a liquid," said zoo spokeswoman Laurie Herron. "But at this point we're thinking it was not accidental."

Tests from an independent lab released early Wednesday suggested the water chemistry of the ray pool was within acceptable ranges. Analysis included checking levels of ammonia, dissolved oxygen, PH, salinity and other natural minerals.

Initial tests, however, are not able to identify possible toxins in the water.

Late Sunday, 26 of the 43 rays housed in the pool died, with the other deaths following over the following days. Only four rays remain.

Cathy Gavillier, the zoo's director of conservation, education and research, said the sudden death of so many rays points to the likelihood of a foreign substance being added to the water.

"It's disturbing to think of this as a possibility, but we have so far been unable to pinpoint any other cause that would provoke such an acute and severe reaction in the rays."

jefftego

15 responses // Poisoning suspected in sudden death of 39 stingrays at Calgary Zoo

  • Who would do something like this and why?
    JanforGore
  • You search for sanity and reason where in fact none may exist.
    eldamon
  • i think it was the terrorist
    riverdeer
  • I think it was Steve Irwin's (aka Crocodile Hunter) ghost
    ctrl_alt_del
  • I think the toxins were in the food. If you look at the timelines that were provided by the zoo they didn't appear to have any problems till after their feeding. Could it perhaps have been tampered food?!
    clarity_kat
  • Was it something put in the water, or something already in the water? I find this disturbing.
    JanforGore
  • Scary? How could someone put something in the water without anyone else noticing them do it? It must have been in the feed. Have they checked that yet? This kind of thing is really sick.
    JoQ
    • JoQ
    • 2 months ago
  • It is really sad. There are only 4 remaining of the original 43 rays.

    The tank was open to the public and people could feed and pet the rays, so someone could probably put something in the water without being noticed.
    jefftego
  • Wasn't there a recent news item about a ray flipping out of the ocean and onto the deck of a boat and killing a woman?? Maybe somebody thought they were getting revenge on rays (good grief!).
    shelchak
  • weird.
    ILiveonaClock
  • Stingrays killed the crocodile hunter.
    Stingrays must die.
    Juas
  • Increasingly, it seems that aquariums would be better served if people WEREN'T allowed in.
    mako2424
  • I used to have an aquarium - but then I saw "Nemo" and gave it to my neighbors son. Guilt - the gift that keeps on giving. sigh. This is sad.
    patsarts
  • Oh those poor widdle babies!!!!
    Julie_Soller
  • There are all kinds of people living in this world. Why this type of disregard for life happens i will never understand.
    starlightblue

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