March 18, 2024

Des Moines zoo tiger dies of lymphoma

DES MOINES — A tiger at the Blank Park Zoo in Des Moines has died of cancer.

The 6-year-old Siberian tiger named Max died March 21. He came to the zoo in June from the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago to breed with another Blank Park Zoo tiger. Zoo spokesman Ryan Bickel says Max showed signs of illness in late February. A necropsy performed at Iowa State University identified lymphoma, a type of cancer, as the cause of Max’s illness and death. The zoo received the test results on Tuesday.