Cape Town — The famous pygmy hippo, and future face of South Africa tourism "Prince Harry" passed away after going into cardiac arrest during surgery on Thursday.

In a statement from the wildlife ranch where Harry was living said,"Unfortunately at the conclusion of the operation he went into respiratory arrest and ultimately heart failure,', "In Harry's short life, he managed to raise much needed awareness for his species. He was an extremely happy little hippo."

Harry was the youngest of eight siblings and was 2 1/2 months old.