Monkey dead from bubonic plague in US

DENVER: A Denver Zoo monkey has died of bubonic plague, apparently after eating a squirrel stricken with the disease, Colorado health and zoo officials said on Monday.

Five squirrels and a rabbit found dead on zoo grounds tested positive for the flea-borne disease in recent weeks, a Denver Zoo spokeswoman said. Zookeepers on May 15 noticed the 8-year-old hooded capuchin monkey was lethargic, and the next day it was found dead in its enclosure.

Zoo veterinarians sent tissue samples to a laboratory where it was determined the animal died of the plague. Officials said that the risk of plague spreading to humans was extremely low.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/World/The_United_States/Monkey_dead_from_bubonic_plague_in_US/articleshow/2067631.cms