Four Lions At Chennai’s Arignar Anna Zoological Park Infected With Delta Variant Of COVID-19

Chennai:  At least four lions at the Arignar Anna Zoological Park in Chennai, tested positive for COVID-19, are infected with the Delta or B.1.617.2 variant of the virus.

This was known after genome sequencing of the samples of these lions was done by Indian Council of Agricultural Research – National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (ICAR-NIHSAD).

As per the results, all four samples were infected with the Delta or B.1.617.2 variant of COVID-19.

Notably, two lions have died of COVID-19 at the zoo this month.

The zoo administration had sent the samples of 11 lions housed in the park for testing for SARS CoV-2 to the ICAR-National Institute of High Security Animal Diseases (NIHSAD), Bhopal.

Initially, the samples of nine lions returned positive for SARS CoV-2 and the animals have been under active treatment since then.