Pakistani elephant dies weeks later after long-awaited reunion: Video
Sonia, an African elephant who was recently reunited with her sister Madhubala after 15 years of separation, has died at Karachi Safari Park in southern Pakistan, park officials announced on Sunday, December 8.
Sonia, nearly 19 years old, is the second elephant to die in Karachi within two years. She had lived at the safari park since 2009.
According to the park’s director, Syed Amjad Hussain Zaidi, Sonia died of an apparent heart attack.
"I received a call at around 6 am from one of our elephant trainers who said that Sonia was not standing on her feet, so I called the zoologist Dr. Amir. We came here at around 06:30 am, and after a checkup by Dr. Amir Ismail, he declared her dead. When I asked him about the reason, he told me that it was a sudden death, like a heart attack," he told AFP.
“Sonia was doing well at her last health check-up about 10 days ago,” Zaidi said. He also noted that Austrian animal welfare group Four Paws had visited her at the end of November.
He disclosed that an autopsy will be conducted in the coming days to determine the cause of death.
Sonia and Madhubala were separated in 2009 after being captured from the wild and brought to Pakistan alongside their two other sisters, Noor Jehan and Malika. While Sonia and Malika were sent to Karachi Safari Park, Noor Jehan and Madhubala were placed at Karachi Zoo.
The death of Noor Jehan in April 2023 drew criticism of Karachi Zoo’s animal care practices from Four Paws, which called for better conditions for the remaining elephants. This led to Madhubala’s transfer to the safari park, where she joined Sonia and Malika just last month.
The reunion was short-lived, as Sonia’s sudden death now leaves only two of the original four sisters alive. “Today, after the death of Sonia, we have two elephants left,” Zaidi said.
