Mangaluru : A male tiger and a King Cobra, which were brought from Pilikula Nisarga Dhama, Mangaluru, to the Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens (Mysuru zoo) under an animal exchange programme recently, died due to health issues.

Two Indian Gaur calves, four Black Swans and two striped Hyenas were despatched to Mangaluru’s Pilikula Nisarga Dhama from Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens at Mysuru in exchange for two Lesser Whistling Ducks, two Royal Bengal Tigers and four King Cobras to Mysuru.

However, the Cobra died on Saturday, a day after being brought to Mysuru zoo on February 28, while the male tiger died on Sunday.

According to zoo executive director Ajit Kulkarni, the tiger died due to heart attack and King Cobra died due to liver problems. The remains of the dead animals will be sent to the laboratory for examination.