Tiger King star Erik Cowie’s cause of death has been confirmed.

The zoo keeper, who appeared in the first series of the hit Netflix series, was discovered face down in a New York appartment on September 3.

A medical examiner has now determined that Cowie’s cause of death was “acute and chronic alcohol use,” ruling his passing as “natural”.

Cowie was open about his struggles with alcohol, but denied speculation that he was a meth addict.

He was arrested earlier this year in Oklahoma for driving under the influence following a car crash.

A warrent was issued for his arrest in May when he later failed to show up for a court appearance.

Best known for starring in Tiger King, Cowie worked for Joe Exotic at his G.W. Zoo for eight years.

Exotic - real name Joseph Maldonado-Passage - was arrested in June 2018 for hiring two hit-men to kill nemesis and animal rights activist, Carole Baskin.

He was also charged with several counts of animal abuse.

Despite initially being a staunch supporter of Exotic, Cowie testified against him in court.

In January 2020, Exotic was sentenced to 22 years in prison.