Lioness at Sedgwick County Zoo since 2000 dies of renal failure

Nemesis, an approximately 19-year-old African lioness, died Tuesday at the Sedgwick County Zoo from apparent renal failure, said Mark Reed, the zoo’s executive director.

For the past two weeks, physical testing of the lioness indicated her kidneys were beginning to shut down, Reed said. Official necropsy results were not available Tuesday evening.

She has been a fixture at the zoo’s lion exhibit since it opened in 2000, Reed said.

“It’s all part of that circle of life,” Reed said. “It’s just the price our keepers have to pay for the privilege of being able to work with these animals.”

Originally from an area just north of Johannesburg in South Africa, Nemesis was brought to the Oklahoma City Zoo as part of a national effort to establish a “pure” South African lion colony in North America, Reed said. She came to Wichita in 2000.

She was what Reed called a Krugeri lion, which is one of the largest breeds in South Africa.

Her large size complemented her personality, Reed said.

“She was a tough lady,” he said. “You didn’t want to make a mistake around her.”

Her male counterpart, Majola, is “one of the most handsome lions” Reed said he has ever seen. With Majola, Nemesis mothered six cubs at the Sedgwick County Zoo, one of which – Michael – still lives at the zoo.

“She and Majola got along great,” Reed said. “She didn’t have big litters like a lot of lions, but she was a great mother to all the cubs that she raised.”

Reed said Nemesis was an important matriarch for the entire African lion population in the United States.

In total, Nemesis mothered 12 cubs. She was also grandmother to 24 “grandcubs” and seven “great-grandcubs,” Reed said.

Her progeny can be found in Los Angeles, Seattle, Memphis, Philadelphia, Dallas and West Palm Beach, Fla., among other cities.

Reed said Nemesis’ son Michael and his mate are breeding; the zoo expects to have lion cubs either this year or early in 2015.

“She lives on here at the zoo through her son,” Reed said.

This story was originally published September 23, 2014 at 7:36 PM with the headline "Lioness at Sedgwick County Zoo since 2000 dies of renal failure."