Paul, the WCup predicting octopus, dies at 2 1/2
Paul had reached the octopus old age of 2 1/2 years and died in his tank on Tuesday morning in an aquarium in the western German city of Oberhausen, spokeswoman Ariane Vieregge said.
Paul seemed to be in good shape when he was checked late Monday, but he did not make it through the night. He died of natural causes, Vieregge added.
"We had all naturally grown very fond of him and he will be sorely missed," Sea Life manager Stefan Porwoll said in a statement.
The aquarium has not yet decided how best to commemorate their most famous resident, he said.
"We may decide to give Paul his own small burial plot within our grounds, and erect a modest permanent shrine," Porwoll said.
After rising to global prominence during the World Cup in South Africa in June and July, Paul retired from the predictions business after the final between Spain and the Netherlands - the result of which he also forecast correctly - and returned to his prime role of making children happy.
The invertebrate was stepping "back from the official oracle business," Tanja Munzig, a spokeswoman for the Sea Life aquarium in Oberhausen, told AP Television News at the time.
"He won't give any more oracle predictions - either in football, nor in politics, lifestyle or economy," she said. "Paul will get back to his former job, namely making children laugh."
Paul correctly tipped the outcome of all seven of Germany's games. He made his predictions by opening the lid of one of two clear plastic boxes, each containing a mussel and bearing a team flag; Kazinform cites China Daily.
See www.chinadaily.com.cn for full version
