The male giraffe from Bioparc València, named Julio, has died in this park at the age of 18, an advanced age for his species, after having seven descendants that have joined other controlled breeding groups in different European parks, with the exception of one of his daughters, born in 2011.
The giraffe was moved to Valencia in 2007 on the recommendation of the international conservation program for this seriously endangered species and included in the IUCN Red List, and lived in the Bioparc savanna area along with other species.
This male of the Baringo giraffe subspecies (Giraffa camelopardalis rothschildi) was a marvelous representative of the tallest land animal that exists and it was impressive to contemplate “face to face” at its nearly six meters in height, recalls the Valencian park.
His slow walk, with the different types of antelope and birds at his feet, his courtship of the females and his tenderness with his young made him a very unique animal and appreciated by the entire animal care team, according to Bioparc sources.
Julio’s death occurred at the age of 18, which is considered an advanced age taking into account that life expectancy in a controlled environment is between 20-27 years and in the wild with a range of 10-15. years.
He arrived in Valencia from the Aalborg Zoo in Denmark with the aim of forming a stable breeding group and undertaking a leading role in the European Endangered Species Program (EEP) of this beautiful subspecies of giraffe, included in the IUCN Red List ( International Union for Conservation of Nature) which is in serious danger of extinction.
Giraffe populations are declining, with some subspecies losing up to 95% of their individuals in the last three decades.
Thanks to the alert launched by the conservation world, with on-site actions such as those carried out by the Bioparc Foundation, along with other actions undertaken, there are currently 429 Baringo giraffes in European parks.
Julio’s inheritance, seven giraffes, has been integrated into other controlled breeding groups in different European parks. One of his daughters, África, born in 2011, remains in Valencia with the female Zora.
Bioparc points out, just a few days after the birth of a second elephant, that the death of the giraffe will be “very felt” among visitors and for “an entire generation of young people who have grown up admiring the presence of one of their favorite animals and learning to assess the need to protect them.
