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Every Year, the zoo holds a major birthday bash in her honor, and this year, as she turned the big 3-0, it was even more special. 7News attended and Daniel Ortiz has that report.

Daniel Ortiz Reporting
At the Belize Zoo, birthday parties are extravagant events, and the 30th birthday celebration for April, the Tapir, was no different. Students from all over the country gathered in her honor at the Zoo.

Keeping mind that this lady's life span is being measured in human years, she's outlived her life expectancy by 5.

That is impressive not only because she's survived so long, but also because when she was just a calf, she had to be rescued from a parasite infestation, which almost claimed her life.

And now, she's the poster-girl for her endangered species residing in Belize.

Jamal Andrewin - Bohn - Environmental Educator, Belize Zoo
"We have to keep noting that April is the oldest living female in captivity in the world. That is a huge achievement. Normally in the wild they live about 20 - 25 years. I think the record is at 34 years so we're hoping that she beats that record. From April got here 30 years ago has been an ambassador of her species. April is a Belizean icon - everyone knows her.

Sharon Matola - Founding Director, Belize Zoo
"Thirty years of April is astounding. I'm in the clouds just having the crowd of people here and their enthusiasm . I realize the impact - probably more than anyone else - that animal has had for our nation. They are important animals, they are endangered and they are ours."

Jamal Andrewin - Bohn
"The great thing about her is she's large, she's gentle, charismatic - she comes right up to the fence when she's out. There are areas where you can see Tapirs in a natural environment and learn about how magnificent the species is and how important it is for our forest. April is the name you attach to Tapirs in Belize and that's her job here. The emulator of importance her species has in our country."

April is important as a symbol that the importance of Tapirs to Belize should never be lost on the public.

Jamal Andrewin - Bohn
"To make it easy for the kids to understand - they make the forest grow, that is simply what they do. They disperse seeds and they recylce nutrients back into their environment. They are bio-indicators because they are a massive mamal. If something is wrong in the forest, Tapirs are one of the first ones to be affected. That's their value to us even in our culture; we're still a country that depend heavily on the rain forest. When you hear Rain Forest you think animals like Tapirs, Jaguars, Toucans, it's linked. You can't have one without the other. Our Tourism Industry is based heavily on eco-tourism. People come to Belize for the cayes, the forest and the Maya sites; all natural type things."

So, with that goal to keep the importance of Tapirs in the national consciousness, the Belize Zoo held a competition to involve the public in April's birthday celebration.

Jamal Andrewin - Bohn
"Because it was April's 30th - we decided it needed to be big and we needed to involve the people of Belize. We keep saying that the Zoo is for the children of Belize. The parties that we have for 'Junior the Jaguar' and April; we decided everyone had to be a part of it in some kind of way to make it last like a legacy. We ran a very small slogan competition country wide. We asked students to submit a catchy slogan summarizing April and the species on a whole and celebrating the fact that she's 30 this year and everything she's done for the country. We had four young ladies from the Buena Vista Government School in the west and they submitted a slogan that had exactly what we wanted that summarized thirty years of April. It's '30 years of April. 30 years of Appreciation, Protection, Respect, Integrity and Love. Happy 30th Birthday April' and that is what it was and that is why we are honoring them today. They said it better than anyone could have at the Zoo."

The celebration was filled to capacity with entertainment from Panerific Steel Band from Our Lady of Guadeloupe Primary School.

The students also were entertained by the high-flying acrobatics of Belize Tumblers.

But no party is complete without birthday cakes, and April got 4 of them.

When it was time for the students to sing her happy birthday, the old girl left her morning soak in her pond, and stepped forward to greet her well-wishers.

The institution that April has become in the Belizean Culture was best displayed with a ceremonial unveiling of 2 photographs which featured Claire Gibson who was only 3 years old when she first visited April. Gibson returned this year to visit her again, and the passage of time is striking.

Sharon Matola
"April was just a pup and little Claire was three years old and that pictures shows the inquisitveness, interest and excitement on a little kid's face. It's an example of hundreds and thousands of children that have been to the zoo; they learn about their animals and they leave feeling national pride about their country."

Over 150 students from Buena Vista and Golden Stream communities were invited as some of our special invited guests. Today was also recognized by the Zoo as National Tapir Day.