World | zoo Nightmare Zoo's Giraffe Dies, Stomach Full of Plastic Overcrowding, infighting plague Indonesian facility By Matt Cantor Posted Mar 13, 2012 3:25 PM CDT Copied In this March 7 photo, some 180 pelicans sit inside a pen, about the size of a volleyball court, at Surabaya Zoo in Surabaya, East Java, Indonesia. (AP Photo/Trisnadi) The death of a giraffe that had 40 pounds of plastic in its stomach—it ate trash routinely tossed into its pen—is just the latest crisis at Indonesia's biggest zoo. Two years back, a report said 25 of Surabaya Zoo's animals were dying monthly; that figure has been brought down to about 15. But the AP paints a shocking picture of continuing conditions there: Pelicans crowded so densely that they can't spread their wings without bumping into each other; a tiger that's covered in skin lesions; an apparently poisoned warthog. "This is extremely tragic, but of course by no means surprising in Indonesia's zoos, given the appalling way they are managed on the whole," says an ex-zookeeper. Much of the problem stems from crowded conditions thanks to excessive breeding. Charging just $2 admission, the zoo can't afford to separate males and females. Meanwhile, internal conflicts among the zookeepers are thought to have led to the warthog's poisoning. It's time to either transfer animals out or privatize the place, says a director. Read These Next SCOTUS sounds skeptical about law banning gay conversion therapy. Felix Baumgartner's death attributed to his own error. Trump, Johnson aren't happy with pick for Super Bowl headliner. Robin Williams' daughter: AI clips of him are 'disturbing' Report an error