Baby giraffe found dead with broken neck at Florida zoo: 'Devastating'
The baby giraffe was born on Dec. 15 and died after breaking its neck in March. (Zoo Miami/Ron Magill)
MIAMI, Fla. - A 3-month-old female giraffe died at Zoo Miami after breaking its neck over the weekend, officials said.
The juvenile giraffe, who was born on Dec. 15, was found dead by zoo employees on Saturday morning. After performing a necropsy, staff determined that she died of asphyxiation after breaking her neck.
Zoo Miami officials are still unsure what caused the young animal's death, but they believe she may have been startled by something that caused her to run into a fence.
"Zoo staff continue to closely monitor the herd for any indication of stress or abnormal behavior while searching for any indication of what may have led to this very sad incident," the Florida zoo's statement read.
A Zoo Miami official told Fox News Digital that it is "certainly not common" for a giraffe to break its neck.
"With that said, it is difficult to say what could be done to prevent a similar occurrence in the future," Zoo Miami communications director Ron Magill explained. "It is apparent that something must have startled the animal which caused it to run into a fence, resulting in the fatal injury."
"However, none of the other giraffes that were living alongside this young female showed any signs of trauma, so it is difficult to say what might have caused this individual [giraffe] to sustain the injury."
Magill added that no predators were detected in the area, and the zoo did not capture any footage of the incident.
"Zoo staff is continuing to monitor the behavior of the herd as well as the surrounding areas in hopes of discovering a more definitive explanation of what may have happened," Magill added.
Zoo Miami said it is actively investigating the giraffe's death.