ASHEBORO, N.C. — The North Carolina Zoo is permanently closing its R.J. Reynolds Forest Aviary. The zoo made the announcement Thursday with "heavy hearts."

The 40-year-old domed aviary structure, built in the early 1980s, requires significant repairs from humidity and wet conditions, zoo officials say.

"For 40 years, the Zoo's Aviary offered a special place to connect with nature," North Carolina Zoo's Director Pat Simmons said. "The free-flying birds and tropical plants served as an oasis for many people - guests and staff alike. It was a heart-wrenching decision to close the Aviary; however, safety is our highest priority.”

Zoo leaders say 93 birds of 33 species are being relocated to other parts of the zoo or to other Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) facilities.

"It is truly an immersive habitat, and guests often remarked that they felt as though they were really in a tropical forest," Debbie Zombeck, the zoo's curator of birds, said of the exhibit. Zombeck has been at the zoo for 29 years.

The zoo is also working on a plan to remove more than 2,000 plants of 450 species from the aviary.

Staff at the zoo will not lose their jobs, zoo leaders say, but may be reassigned to other parts of the zoo.

The aviary closed on January 24 due to recent threats from the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).

The HPAI virus is described as a highly contagious disease that can affect several species of birds. Zoo officials say none of their birds tested positive for the virus.

There are no immediate plans to rebuild the aviary.