Harambe is not a Patronus, JK Rowling insists

Harry Potter author moves to dismiss suggestions dead gorilla is among the forms of advanced magic that can be used to shield people from Dementors

Richard A. L. Williams

Thursday 22 September 2016 17:50

The image retweeted by JK Rowling

(JK Rowling/Pottermore)

Harambe is not a Patronus, JK Rowling has been forced to clarify.

The Harry Potter author issued a statement on her Twitter page dismissing suggestions the killed gorilla was among the forms of advanced magic that could be used to shield people from Dementors.

Speculation the primate shot dead at Cincinnati Zoo was one of the raft of options provided on Rowling's Pottermore website was prompted when she retweeted an image appearing to depict the late animal as a Patronus.

But the writer attempted to quell the growing source of excitement online, with a clarifying post moments later, saying: "I've been asked to make it clear that Harambe is not a Patronus you can actually get on @pottermore. The previous RT is a joke. As you were."

She added that she "thought it was very funny".

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Discover your Patronus at Pottermore

Cincinnati Zoo’s male silverback was shot dead in May after a three-year-old child fell into his enclosure, prompting widespread grief and anger.

A series of online tributes have since been made to the slain animal, including calls for another zoo to name their new baby gorilla after him.

The chief executive of Cincinnati Zoo previously asked people to stop making memes and jokes about the deceased primate amid a seemingly perpetual flow of homages to the departed beast across various sections of the internet and from across the political spectrum.

In August, a Cincinnati school made a man in a gorilla outfit the new mascot for its football team in an apparent tribute to the expired creature.

The most controversial animal killings

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1/6The most controversial animal killings

The most controversial animal killings

Cincinnati Zoo worker shots and kills Harambe, the 17-year-old gorilla

Harambe, a 17-year-old gorilla was shot and killed by a Cincinnati Zoo worker after a three-year-old boy climbed into a gorilla enclosure and was grabbed and dragged by Harambe. The incident was recorded on video and received broad international coverage and commentary, including controversy over the choice to kill Harambe. A number of primatologists and conservationists wrote later that the zoo had no other choice under the circumstances, and that it highlighted the danger of zoo animals in close proximity to humans and the need for better standards of care

Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden

The most controversial animal killings

Walt Palmer (left), from Minnesota, who killed Cecil, the Zimbabwean lion (pictured here with another lion shot in Africa)

Walter James Palmer has been named by Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force as the shooter of Cecil, a 13-year-old prized lion. He is now wanted by Zimbabwe officials on poaching charges. The lion was protected and the subject of a decade long study by the Wildlife Unit of Oxford University in the UK. He was outfitted with a GPS collar and was killed in Hwange National Park. The Zimbabwe National Parks and Wildlife Authority and the Safari Operators Association said that two men were charged with poaching in connection to Mr Palmer

The most controversial animal killings

Kendall Jones hunting images

Kendall Jones, a 19-year-old Texas Tech university student, has provoked worldwide fury after posting pictures of herself smiling next to animals she hunted, including a lion, rhinoceros, antelope, leopard, elephant, zebra and hippopotamus

The most controversial animal killings

Rebecca Francis hunting images

Rebecca Francis, a huntress who has killed dozens of wild animals has been sent death wishes by furious social media users after a picture showing her lying down next to a dead giraffe was circulated. Rebecca Francis has a website and Facebook page dedicated to the animals she has killed in hunts across Africa and America. Francis, a prolific hunter who has also co-hosted the television show Eye of the Hunter, regularly posts pictures of herself posing next to dead bears, giraffes, buffaloes and zebras, among other animals. She uses a bow and arrow to kill her prey

The most controversial animal killings

The slaughter of Marius, an 18-month-old healthy giraffe in Copenhagen Zoo

Copenhagen Zoo made the controversial decision to euthanise a healthy giraffe named Marius, which was later dissected and fed to lions as visitors watched. The slaughter sparked a furious backlash from social media users and zoo staff have received death threats by phone and email. Soon after the incident, Copenhagen Zoo faced an international outcry once again after four healthy lions were put down

The most controversial animal killings

Swiss Dählhölzli zoo kills healthy brown bear cub

A Switzerland zoo faced heavy criticism from animal rights groups, after keepers put down a healthy brown bear cub to spare it from being bullied by its dominant male father. The 360 kg male bear Misha had already killed one of his 11-week old cubs in public and was bullying the second, staff at the zoo said, because he was jealous of the attention the cubs were receiving from their mother, Masha. Both adult brown bears had been donated to Bern’s Dählhölzli zoo in 2009. Campaigners condemned staff there for not separating the cubs, who are being referred to as Baby Bear Two and Baby Bear Three, and their mother from Misha after their birth in January

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Video showed the costumed man dragging a child by the arm in a manner reminiscent of the real Harambe on the fateful day the boy fell into his enclosure.

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