What are the origins of this fun-filled festive custom?
An incident took place at Jamaica Zoo in Lacovia, St. Elizabeth, on May 20, 2022, and it was captured on video. The disturbing footage shows a lion biting off a zoo attendant's finger after the man inserted his hand into its cage.
In the video, the man can be seen prodding and stroking the lion while it roared and exposed its teeth. However, the situation quickly turned dangerous as the lion seized the man's finger. Initially, witnesses believed it was a joke until they realized that the man had lost the first joint of his finger. According to Newsweek, this is not the first complaint that Jamaica Zoo has received for mistreating animals. "You keep kicking... After a while, it's going to turn around and bite you," said an animal rights representative.
According to a report by the BBC, a lioness in a zoo in central Iran reportedly managed to open a door to its enclosure in 2022 by using an iron lever. Tragically, the lioness attacked and killed a zookeeper who had come to feed her. Following the incident, both the lioness and another escaped lion wandered freely within the zoo for a few hours until they were eventually captured again.
In December 2020, a zookeeper at Shoalhaven Zoo (located approximately 150 km/90 mi from Sydney) was attacked by two lions. The BBC reported that the 35-year-old woman had serious injuries to her face and neck. The incident occurred while she was cleaning an enclosure and was unexpectedly ambushed by the animals. Paramedics discovered her unconscious with severe injuries inside the enclosure. The zookeeper was airlifted to a hospital in Sydney in critical condition.
This event left a lasting mark in history. In 2010, Tilikum, a captive killer whale, made headlines worldwide with a shocking attack on a whale instructor at SeaWorld Orlando.
During a performance, Tilikum suddenly grabbed Dawn Brancheau by the ponytail, pulled her underwater, and killed her. This was not the first time Tilikum had been involved in fatal incidents, as he had previously caused the deaths of two other individuals in 1992 and 1999. The tragic story was explored in the 2013 documentary 'Blackfish.'
In 2016, an incident at the Cincinnati Zoo gained global attention when a 3-year-old child climbed into the enclosure of a gorilla named Harambe.
Harambe grabbed the boy and pulled him across the enclosure. A zookeeper fatally shot the gorilla. The incident continues to provoke debate about whether the killing was justified and who was at fault.
In 2012, a tragedy occurred at Copenhagen Zoo when a young man, age 21, lost his life after entering the tiger enclosure. According to a police spokesman, the individual was fatally attacked in the water.
In 1996, Patricia Wyman, a newly hired employee, was attacked at a wildlife reserve in Ontario, Canada.
Wyman was responsible for the wellbeing of five gray wolves, who tragically attacked and fatally wounded her. Although no one saw the incident, speculations suggest that she accidentally stumbled, inadvertently provoking the wolves' instinctual predatory behavior.
In 2009, a woman climbed over a fence and into Berlin Zoo, only to find herself in a polar bear enclosure.
The animal managed to take a few bites out of the woman's back before zookeepers could intervene and save her.
In 2008, a tragic incident took place at Singapore Zoo when three white Bengal tigers fatally attacked a zoo cleaner within their enclosure.
Nordin Montong was killed after he waded through the moat that separated the tigers from the visitors. It was later ruled that Montong had crossed into their dangerous territory with the intention of ending his life. He was just 32 years old.
At Oklahoma Zoo in 1998, a tapir named Melody surprised everyone by behaving uncharacteristically aggressively.
Zookeeper Lisa Morehead was feeding Melody when the animal unexpectedly bit her arm and eventually tore it off.
In 2012, at Sydney's Taronga Zoo, a trainer faced an unforeseen danger from a two-year-old elephant. Using its trunk, the animal trapped the trainer against a wall, yet miraculously, the woman managed to survive.
On December 25, 2007, an incident occurred at San Francisco Zoo where a Siberian tiger named Tatiana escaped its enclosure and violently attacked three men, resulting in one fatality.
Following this, the zoo made improvements to its tiger enclosures, including the installation of hot wire lines, according to SFGate.
In July 1994 at the Alaska Zoo,
an Australian tourist had a brush with death after she snuck into the polar bear enclosure. Kathryn Warburton got out alive, but Binky the polar bear kept one of her shoes as a trophy.
A woman named Ms. Zhao in the media suffered a horrific incident in 2016 when she entered the tiger enclosure at an animal park near Beijing. After driving her car inside, she decided to leave the safety of her car and was killed by the tigers.
Beijing Zoo is where Gu Gu, a giant panda, has increasingly displayed aggressive behavior throughout the years.
The panda is said to have attacked three individuals, including a intoxicated man in 2006 and a 15-year-old in 2007.
Mila the elephant spent 30 years in the circus before she was relocated to Franklin Zoo in New Zealand.
In 2012, it seems that zoo owner Helen Schofield wanted to relocate Mila to a sanctuary in California. Unfortunately, she was unable to carry out this plan, as Mila tragically killed Schofield with her trunk.
In 2004, the Dallas Zoo faced a catastrophe when visitors started taunting a gorilla named Jabari.
Jabari managed to climb the curved walls of his enclosure and escape, causing chaos at the zoo. All individuals survived except for Jabari, who was shot by SWAT.
In Johannesburg, a retired zoo worker named Joe Ramonetha returned to assist with the lions, like the lioness Nyanga.
In 2012, Nyanga attacked Ramonetha a bit through his neck, killing him. She was later relocated to a sanctuary.
In 2012, a tragic incident occurred at Pittsburgh Zoo when a two-year-old named Maddox Derkosh fell into a wild dog habitat.
The boy did not survive; the autopsy confirmed his death resulted from the animal attack.
Terry Thomspon, a Vietnam war veteran, was a lifelong collector of exotic animals who established his own zoo in Zanesville, Ohio. This private zoo was reportedly negligent of the animals and didn't take proper safety precautions.
In 2011, Thompson was spiraling, facing gun charges from the police, massive debt, and a divorce. He decided to release his 50 wild animals and take his own life. The mistreated lions, tigers, grizzly bears, wolves, and monkeys were unleashed. Police killed 48 of them in the tragic and unnecessary incident.
See also: The dark secrets zoos don't want you to know about
On September 1, 2024, an experienced tiger handler from Australia's Dreamworld theme park was attacked and suffered serious injuries to her arm.
Dreamworld's Tiger Island, which opened nearly 30 years ago, is one of just two interactive tiger exhibits worldwide and is home to both Sumatran and Bengal Tigers that are currently endangered.
Animal welfare advocates have already spoken out, stating that this incident was "another sad reminder that close interactions with wild animals held captive for entertainment purposes can be dangerous for both humans and the animals."
Zoos are not typically the place to witness wild animals behaving badly. Nonetheless, there have been moments when nature takes its course or unfortunate accidents happen. Animal attacks in zoos have always happened, but in recent years there have been some particularly high-profile incidents that brought the issue into the spotlight.
Intrigued? Browse through this gallery to see a compilation of the most violent zoo attacks in recent history.
Zoo visits turned tragic
When caged animals bite back
LIFESTYLE Animals
Zoos are not typically the place to witness wild animals behaving badly. Nonetheless, there have been moments when nature takes its course or unfortunate accidents happen. Animal attacks in zoos have always happened, but in recent years there have been some particularly high-profile incidents that brought the issue into the spotlight.
Intrigued? Browse through this gallery to see a compilation of the most violent zoo attacks in recent history.