WORLD ELEPHANT DAY

I love that there is a WORLD ELEPHANT DAY.

These amazing creatures should be put in the spotlight.

The more we know about these superb creatures to better.

I love elephants so much that I had a small indulgence in my book that I have just written. I wrote a chapter showcasing my love of these creatures. Particularly what I have learned from Elephants in my neighbourhood, at the Melbourne Zoo.

Here is my first preview of my book and an insight into the chapter that I wrote about elephants.

THE BABY ELEPHANTS AT THE MELBOURNE ZOO

Please indulge me in some of my true loves of the animal kingdom.

Melbourne Zoo has welcomed three baby elephants at the end of 2022. I am so excited by this news.

My love of elephants started in 2010 when Mali was born. On one of the first days that the public could view Mali, I lined up at the Melbourne Zoo to get my first glimpse of her. From then my fascination and love of these amazing creatures continued. I have seen every baby elephant on one of the first days that they have been viewed by the public. Mali is a star, and she has just had her first baby. She was the first female elephant to be born in Australia. She was so popular that in 2012 there were 50 life-size sculptures created of her and painted by various artists.

Some of the interesting facts that I would love to share:

Eight babies have been born at the Melbourne Zoo.

Five of these calves were fathered by Bong Su by artificial insemination. Bong Su came to the zoo as a youngster in 1977. He was orphaned from an elephant camp in Malaysia. He lived at the zoo for 40 years until he passed away in 2017.

Mali is 12 and her mum Dokkoon is 30 and are both pregnant at the same time.

Num-oi is 22 and is also pregnant. I hope that everything goes well for Num-oi this time because unfortunately, she has given birth to 2 calves and both of them have died very young.

In December 2020 Luk Chai arrived in Melbourne from Dubbo Zoo. Luk Chai is 14 years old and was the first male Asian elephant to be born at Taronga Zoo, Sydney. He has settled in very well and has now fathered 3 of the female elephants at the Melbourne Zoo naturally. The first time this has happened with the breeding program. The three females are Mali, Dokkoon and Num-oi. Mali and Luk Chai’s calf will make history.

The calf will be the first calf born in Australia with their parents also born in Australia. This is so exciting for the breeding program.

Asian elephants are becoming endangered in the wild so the breeding program at Melbourne Zoo has obviously been very successful and we are so lucky that we can enjoy these beautiful animals.

In early 2024, the elephants will have a new home at the Werribee Open Range Zoo. At the moment there is an $84 million expansion being developed to accommodate the growing elephant herd and should be finished for them to be moved by 2024. The Asian elephant is classified as Endangered by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Its population has declined by an estimated 50% over the past 75 years. We need to look after these beautiful creatures.

"The question is, are we happy to suppose that our grandchildren may never be able to see an elephant except in a picture book?"

David Attenborough.

"Elephants are the largest land animals on Earth, with males weighing up to 12,000 pounds, and females weighing up to 8,000 pounds."

HAPPY WORLD ELEPHANT DAY.