African Elephants in Europe 2024

In what has been a string of continual good news, even more has come to share!

Jack at Zlin has been breeding with Zola, and as you can see from the linked video, he definitely seems to be hitting the mark. Of course nothing is ever guaranteed from simply mating, but I have high hopes for the two of them having a calf at some point in late 2025/early 2026!
 
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MennoPebesma said:
At Bioparc Valencia, African elephant Maya is pregnant. She is now in the 20th month of pregnancy, which means she could possibly give birth any day now.

Source: Bioparc Valencia
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It seems that finally something has given in Bioparc Valencia. Is it a natural mating/breeding here?


Zoologico de Lisboa
High time that the Lisboa elephant group gets its act together too, either with a new bull or let the bull rebreed the cows again.
 
Kifaru Bwana said:
It seems that finally something has given in Bioparc Valencia. Is it a natural mating/breeding here?


Zoologico de Lisboa
High time that the Lisboa elephant group gets its act together too, either with a new bull or let the bull rebreed the cows again.
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The article on the website of Biopark Valencia says this:

Efforts are aimed at controlled reproduction and for this we have relied on specialists from the “Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research” (IZW) in Berlin, the only ones who have successfully achieved the complicated insemination in this species.

So Maya was probably artificially inseminated
 
Tusker said:
The article on the website of Biopark Valencia says this:

Efforts are aimed at controlled reproduction and for this we have relied on specialists from the “Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research” (IZW) in Berlin, the only ones who have successfully achieved the complicated insemination in this species.

So Maya was probably artificially inseminated
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I really do hope they move away later from AI with their elephants. Possibly, what needs to happen is evaluation where the females in the herd are with reproductive issues and health.
 
This week's episode of 'Het echte leven in de Dierentuin' (Dutch version of 'The Secret Life Of The Zoo') featured the arrival of elephant bull Tooth at Ouwehands Dierenpark, who arrived in May last year. The episode also featured the first introduction with him and the elephant cows and young Bumi. Everything went fine with the two older females and Tooth, but there were tensions between Tooth and Duna. Tooth focused on Duna at one point and started running after her and Bumi. Bumi was able to get away but Duna was cornered by Tooth and did not let her get away. At that point it was decided to separate them again.

After the episode, Ouwehands Dierenpark gave an update on the elephants on their social media. Tooth and Duna are still not getting along. Whenever Tooth is around, Duna is very wary, while Tooth is eager to go to her. They have not been back together in one enclosure since the first introduction, now about nine months ago. The EEP has been asked for a solution. Which probably means Tooth will move and another bull will come to Ouwehands Dierenpark.
 
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Rajang-GOAT said:
How would Tooth fair at Bioparc Valencia, I wonder?
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There’s no point wasting Tooth at Valencia. They have had three different bulls, two of them well proven, with zero success naturally breeding.

Tooth is very genetically valuable and a natural breeder, but behaviourally iffy. He needs to go somewhere with a cohesive herd of well bonded, socially savvy cows, who are able to deal with his very strong personality, and preferably also with a decent bit of space to allow for natural displacement, if it all possible, although it ultimately depends more on the cows than the facility set up. Wuppertal, Beekse Bergen, Cabarceno, and arguably perhaps Boras or Vienna would all be good facilities for him.

A good bull for Valencia would be one that is a proven natural Breeder, with a more easy-going personality, and at least for now, preferably more well represented, just on the off chance that he ends up staying there for a few years but doesn’t have any success with getting the girls pregnant like Kibo or Pambo. Subjectively some good choices would be Yambo from Beekse, Jums from Cabarceno, or honestly even Abu from Vienna, once he successfully gets all the cows there pregnant (which knowing him, has probably already happened, lol)
 
I disagree that Tooth would be wasted in Valencia. Yes they had three bulls without sucessful natural breeding, but that is not the fault of the females. Yambo was a calf when he came to Valencia and is younger/ same age as the females, that he hasn‘t bred sucesfully is the typical result in such a situation. Pambo was merely 2 months (!) in Valencia before he died. And Kibo apparently didn‘t have sexual interest in the females for reasons only he knew. At least some of the females are fertile as the 2 pregnancy by AI proves.
 
Hyak_II said:
There’s no point wasting Tooth at Valencia. They have had three different bulls, two of them well proven, with zero success naturally breeding.

Tooth is very genetically valuable and a natural breeder, but behaviourally iffy. He needs to go somewhere with a cohesive herd of well bonded, socially savvy cows, who are able to deal with his very strong personality, and preferably also with a decent bit of space to allow for natural displacement, if it all possible, although it ultimately depends more on the cows than the facility set up. Wuppertal, Beekse Bergen, Cabarceno, and arguably perhaps Boras or Vienna would all be good facilities for him.
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I think it would make the most sense for Tooth to be sent back to Wuppertal, he has already proven himself with both Sabie and her daughter, it would allow Sweni to breed again and hopefully have daughters of her own
 
Yassa said:
I disagree that Tooth would be wasted in Valencia. Yes they had three bulls without sucessful natural breeding, but that is not the fault of the females. Yambo was a calf when he came to Valencia and is younger/ same age as the females, that he hasn‘t bred sucesfully is the typical result in such a situation. Pambo was merely 2 months (!) in Valencia before he died. And Kibo apparently didn‘t have sexual interest in the females for reasons only he knew. At least some of the females are fertile as the 2 pregnancy by AI proves.
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I don’t implicitly disagree with any of your points, they’re all valid (although I thought Pambo was there for almost a year before his death, of course I could just have that mixed up in my head though). Ultimately Tooth paired up with the Valencia cows would be excellent genetically considering that they’re all essentially founders to the population, and like you said, there’s no real reason why they shouldn’t be able to breed just fine, tooth is proven naturally and the cows are obviously fertile. I think just factoring in the fact that the cows are getting older, and tooth is behaviourally problematic, although there is a potential for great success, there’s also the potential for just having social issues from tooth and losing out on the cows reproductive windows in the meantime.
 
Tooth is getting along fine with most females. In Rhenen, he is totally fine with Tembo and Aja. Just not with Duna, probably because she didn‘t respect him during his first time in Rhenen when he was younger and couldn’t dominate her. I think it‘s no coincidence that he went right for her after he came back, that was revenge for her past disrespectful behavoir.

Now he is old and strong enough to easily dominate adult females and that reduces the likelyhood of similar incidents in the future.
 
Most wonderful news, Punda at Beekse Bergen has given birth....to a girl! This is absolutely spectacular news, both for the facility and the European population on the whole. This also places them in the extremely powerful position of now having a SEVEN cow strong matriline, totally intact, which is subjectively, a rather impressive thing. This newest girl has been given the name Tendai.

Fingers crossed the new little one continues to thrive and grow, along with her half sisters, far into the future.
 
Absolutely lovely news! While a little cow would’ve been nice, another bull is nothing to be unhappy with either at all consider how genetically valuable both Dudu, and especially sire Yoga, are.

I also wouldn’t be surprised to see another calf from Panzi on the ground shortly as well, it seems like Boras breeds them very close together.
 
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