Nico, one of the world’s oldest gorilla dies aged 56

The great ape passed away in his sleep on Sunday and had spent most of his life at the park in Wiltshire, England after arriving from Switzerland in the 1980s.

Staff at the park, however, think he might have been older as they were not quite sure of his exact age.

A spokeswoman Longleat says on Facebook: “Everyone here has been truly saddened by the death of Nico. Nico on his 56th birthday

“His main keeper has been working with Nico virtually on a daily basis since 1989 and has forged an extraordinarily close bond with him.

“It goes without saying that he is particularly devastated by the loss along with the rest of his keeping team who have cared for Nico over the years.”

Prior to his death, Nico was not the oldest gorilla. The oldest male gorilla in the world lives in the USA and was born in 1961 while the oldest female, who also lives in America, was born in 1956.