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"This is a very hard loss for our Zoo community," Alisa Behar, curator of mammals at the L.A. Zoo, said in a press release. "In the early mornings, staff would routinely hear Hubert’s waking roars, and I will personally miss hearing them on my walks around the grounds."
Behar said Hubert and Kalisa were inseparable, noting that the couple lived longer than most lions do in human care and in the wild. In zoos, the average life expectancy of an African lion is about 17 years, and in the wild, they live to their mid-teens.
On Instagram, the zoo asked followers to share memories of the two animals in their honor. One commenter wrote, "I remember being so excited when they were vocal on member’s morning. I’ll miss hearing that so much. 😭."
Another zoo-goer commented, "They were always together & now they can continue to be together forever," while another added: "My heart is broken 💔 I'm so thankful I got the chance to see these two every time I visited the LA Zoo and to see how much they cared for another ❤ they will truly be missed 😢😭."
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