Oldest male chimpanzee in US dies at 63

The oldest male chimpanzee named “Cobby” living in an accredited North American zoo died Saturday at the San Francisco Zoo & Gardens.

He was 63. Although the zoo said in a news release that the chimpanzee's cause of death had not been determined, the animal had recently been ill and zoo officials believe old age was a factor. The average life expectancy of the 100,000 to 200,000 chimpanzees living in the wild is 33 years, while it is between 50 and 60 years under human care, the zoo said. Cobby was integral in bringing together the San Francisco Zoo's chimpanzee population, officials said, and acted like the elder of the troop.