Barcelona Zoo announced the death of Susi, an African elephant who was over 55 years old, an exceptional age for her species in captivity. Veterinarians explained that the death occurred due to natural causes, linked to old age, but the news opened a broader debate: that on the meaning of keeping animals in large zoos. Susi was not just any specimen: she was one of the oldest elephants in Europe and also one of the best known to the Catalan public.
A life that began in freedom and ended up behind bars
Susi’s story is that of many wild animals born free and then transformed into attractions. As a young girl she was captured in the wild and forced into a long stint in the circus, before being transferred to the Vergel Safari Park and finally arriving at the Barcelona Zoo in 2002. Since then she has spent over twenty years in captivity, no longer knowing the savannah, migrations or the natural social bonds typical of elephants. A long life, yes, but not the life he deserved.
The “Libera Susi” campaign and betrayed hopes
In 2008, after the death of her partner, the “Susi libera” mobilization exploded, an international campaign calling for the elephant’s transfer to a semi-freedom facility. The story attracted writers, activists, a documentary and even a song dedicated to her. Despite the media attention and public support, Susi never left the zoo. His fate remained to live and die behind fences.
Bully was left alone
With Susi’s passing, the elephant enclosure in the Ciutadella park now houses only one specimen: Bully, who arrived in 2012 and is now around 40 years old. Barcelona Zoo has long since started a transformation that involves the gradual exit of exotic species, and Bully should be the last elephant in the park. A passage that marks the end of an era, but which comes too late for Susi.
An incomplete life
Director Antoni Alarcón remembered the animal as strong and affectionate, praising the work of the keepers and veterinarians. But a truth remains that is difficult to ignore: Susi has lived her entire life in captivity, deprived of the complexity and dignity of wild life. His long life does not erase the fact that it was an incomplete life, marked by a freedom that he could never recover.
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