3 lions perish at Tokyo zoo as Japan bakes in ‘cruelly hot’ summer

Three lions have died of suspected heatstroke at Tokyo’s Tama Zoological Park amid Japan’s record-breaking “cruelly hot” summer as officials boost animal welfare measures to cope with climate-fuelled extreme weather. The zoo’s lion exhibit has been suspended since July 23 when 10 out of its 16 big cats started showing “loss of appetite and decreased activity” from the heat, a spokeswoman told Agence France-Presse on Tuesday. The sick animals received treatment, but three lionesses succumbed…