North American Asian Elephant Population 2025

Zoofan15 said:
Since the US vaccine is targeted towards EEHV1A (which Indali at Chester Zoo also survived), I would assume their vaccine is at least targeted towards this strain; but may also target the EEHV4 strain since this has contributed to the death of an adult breeding cow in Chester’s herd.
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For those interested, I found an interesting research paper which seems to indicate that EEHV4 is the most distantly related out of all the strains, which would make it harder to create a cohesive vaccine for I would think. EEHV4 is also one of the rarely reported strains, with only two cases to my knowledge in Europe, whilst this paper also mentions a few in Asia.

A small number of lethal and nonlethal cases of viral DNA–positive hemorrhagic disease cases in young Asian elephants involved 2 additional related but considerably diverged species of Proboscivirus (EEHV4 and EEHV5). EEHV4 is estimated to have last had common ancestors with EEHV1 35 million years ago and EEHV5 is estimated to have last had common ancestors with EEHV1 20 million years ago.

Elephant Endotheliotropic Herpesvirus Hemorrhagic Disease in Asian Elephant Calves in Logging Camps, Myanmar - PMC
 
Elephant Enthusiast said:
The female calf born August 18, 2025, at the Fort Worth Zoo to mother Bluebonnet has been named Lady Bird ("Birdie").

Fort Worth Zoo - Our little elephant has officially blossomed into her name — meet Lady Bird! | Facebook
Fort Worth Zoo - Our Baby Elephant Has a Name... | YouTube
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I'm glad Birdie has won, not only was it one of the best (if not the best) of the rather dull options, but it's nice that they've continued the 'B' naming trend with Bluebonnet's calves - Bowie, Brazos and now, Birdie.
 
 
Fabulous news!! I'm very happy the zoo was proactive in ensuring Asha became pregnant again in short order once it was apparent she was healthy. Really speaks to how stellar their breeding program is, I bet we can expect a calf from Kairavi in 2028 and potentially another calf from Achara around the same time.
I am very curious as to who the father of this calf is is however.
Rex could technically be the sire given that he passed away in January and Asha's calf was like conceived around November/December 2024. Depending on how poor his health was then, he very well could've bred her as he was the bull that has had a breeding reccomendation with Asha for years. However, considering the way OKC operates, it is just as likely Bowie or Kandula sired this calf.
 
StoppableSan said:
Asha is pregnant and due in 2026!

okczoo on Instagram: "The OKC Zoo has BIG news to share, another LITTLE Asian elephant calf is on its way! Asian elephant Asha is pregnant and her anticipated due date is September 2026! Asha is healthy and the Zoo’s veterinary and elephant care teams are monitoring her and the calf with regular ultrasounds, and everything looks good. This new addition to the herd will be the sixth Asian elephant to be born at the Zoo and an instant playmate for little Xerxes born on June 17, 2025. Asian elephants are endangered so each birth is significant to ensure this species continues to thrive. Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/4nMzE3j"
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Great news for both Asha and OKC!

Asha conceived quite quickly after her miscarriage in July of last year which is surprising. It seems she conceived during her first cycle following the miscarriage.

It would be phenomenal if this calf was sired by Rex shortly before his passing. If so, it would be nice for the calf to be named in tribute of him.
 
StoppableSan said:
Asha is pregnant and due in 2026!

okczoo on Instagram: "The OKC Zoo has BIG news to share, another LITTLE Asian elephant calf is on its way! Asian elephant Asha is pregnant and her anticipated due date is September 2026! Asha is healthy and the Zoo’s veterinary and elephant care teams are monitoring her and the calf with regular ultrasounds, and everything looks good. This new addition to the herd will be the sixth Asian elephant to be born at the Zoo and an instant playmate for little Xerxes born on June 17, 2025. Asian elephants are endangered so each birth is significant to ensure this species continues to thrive. Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/4nMzE3j"
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Amazing news, she certainly got right back on track after losing her first son, hoping for this one to be a girl, even though Asha already has three! Either way, it would be amazing to see a first time calf from Kandula (though his father was very prolific but with a wildborn mother it would still be great), and if it is Bowie who is the sire he could very well be America’s next prolific natural breeding bull over the next 40-50 years as he is only 12 years old already with one calf, so more will definitely establish him! I do hope Kai has her first calf sometime in the next few years too. A few more years down the road we can expect Asha and maybe Rama to have calves around 2030-2031.
 
Nile Hippo Expert said:
Amazing news, she certainly got right back on track after losing her first son, hoping for this one to be a girl, even though Asha already has three! Either way, it would be amazing to see a first time calf from Kandula (though his father was very prolific but with a wildborn mother it would still be great), and if it is Bowie who is the sire he could very well be America’s next prolific natural breeding bull over the next 40-50 years as he is only 12 years old already with one calf, so more will definitely establish him! I do hope Kai has her first calf sometime in the next few years too. A few more years down the road we can expect Asha and maybe Rama to have calves around 2030-2031.
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I think we can almost certianly expect Kai to conceive around this time next year (depending on when she cycles after her 8th birthday) for an early 2028 calf. They've followed AZA guidelines spectacularly thus far in terms of getting their girls pregnant efficiently. It would also line up nicely for another calf from Achara since she should be free to conceive again mid/late 2026 as well. Depending on space (which I don't forsee being a huge issue considering how well-integrated Bowie and Kandula are), they could easily have three more calves on the ground before the decade is out!
 
ZCChip said:
Maybe this is one of the unannounced pregnancies just being announced now. :)
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I'm not too sure on that. Asha is approximately 10 months pregnant, indicating she conceived in late December/January. Elephant pregnancies can be detected at 2 months at the VERY earliest and Asha would've only been a few weeks pregnant at the time of the announcement if that. Which, excitingly, means there are three pregnancies afoot that are still unannounced!
 
StoppableSan said:
Asha is pregnant and due in 2026!

okczoo on Instagram: "The OKC Zoo has BIG news to share, another LITTLE Asian elephant calf is on its way! Asian elephant Asha is pregnant and her anticipated due date is September 2026! Asha is healthy and the Zoo’s veterinary and elephant care teams are monitoring her and the calf with regular ultrasounds, and everything looks good. This new addition to the herd will be the sixth Asian elephant to be born at the Zoo and an instant playmate for little Xerxes born on June 17, 2025. Asian elephants are endangered so each birth is significant to ensure this species continues to thrive. Read the full story here: https://bit.ly/4nMzE3j"
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With Asha's pregnancy being announced, I am feeling pretty confident that 2026 will be a good year for Asian elephant births. Other possible pregnant cows due next year could be Mali, Trong Nhi, Nhi Linh, SheRa, Anak, Tess, Tupelo, maybe even Joy and Belle. With such a long list of likely possibilities, I am feeling quite excited for the upcoming year.

I'm also really looking forward to Samudra and Raja's transfers so that Maliha and Priya can start breeding. Time is of the essence for Maliha as she is already 19, and Priya is at the perfect age to have her first calf. Even Jade should be ready to breed again by the time Sam arrives, so I'm really hoping he makes his way to Saint Louis and can work some magic with the sisters by 2026 if not by the end of this year.
 
It is a very exciting time for the NA population. With almost every breeding adult actively breeding or set to breed, and with a large number of younger individuals set to breed in the coming years, and with the EEHV vaccine, the number of surviving calves will increase greatly. The future is bright for the NA population.
 
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Frankie_number_1_fan said:
I found the zoo's blog post about the pregnancy announcement. It appears both Kandula and Bowie have reccomendations with Asha and they are the potential sires.
OKC ZOO DELIGHTED TO ANNOUNCE ENDANGERED ASIAN ELEPHANT ASHA IS PREGNANT
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My fingers are crossed Kandula's the sire - he's a very valuable bull, especially maternally, and it would also be brilliant for him to finally be a proven bull. Asha's also had four straight daughters - so it feels like a male calf should be next, but perhaps she'll continue that streak with another daughter!
Frankie_number_1_fan said:
I think we can almost certianly expect Kai to conceive around this time next year (depending on when she cycles after her 8th birthday) for an early 2028 calf. They've followed AZA guidelines spectacularly thus far in terms of getting their girls pregnant efficiently. It would also line up nicely for another calf from Achara since she should be free to conceive again mid/late 2026 as well. Depending on space (which I don't forsee being a huge issue considering how well-integrated Bowie and Kandula are), they could easily have three more calves on the ground before the decade is out!
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Achara conceived at eight years and eight months, so if they do the same with Kai, it'll likely be early 2027, which would be perfect to allow her and Achara to have their next calves aligned and form a nice little cohort circa late 2028/early 2029.

Bowie and Kandula are quite close from what I've seen - but I too am not sure whether they're at the point where they can live together full time.
 
IndianRhino said:
I'm also really looking forward to Samudra and Raja's transfers so that Maliha and Priya can start breeding. Time is of the essence for Maliha as she is already 19, and Priya is at the perfect age to have her first calf. Even Jade should be ready to breed again by the time Sam arrives, so I'm really hoping he makes his way to Saint Louis and can work some magic with the sisters by 2026 if not by the end of this year.
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If I'm not mistaken, Raja's move to Columbus has been pushed back to earlier next year, so Samudra likely won't be transferred across until a little later than that. Maliha's turning 20 next year so it's vital she conceives now rather than later.

I'm not too sure why Jade was AI'd, and she wasn't - perhaps she had a failed procedure. Time is certainly ticking with her, but it would be wonderful to see all three girls deliver calves in a cohort setting.
 
Jambo said:
Bowie and Kandula are quite close from what I've seen - but I too am not sure whether they're at the point where they can live together full time.
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It has been stated that they are rarely kept seperated from the breeding group, being able to share an exhibit with the cows essentially daily (outside of musth periods I'm sure). While there is no guarantee that this will remain the case as both bulls grow older, it is a great advantage now that should allow OKC to get several more animals on the ground without too much issue. Their exhibit is of impressive size too that shouldn't be at risk of hitting capacity for years yet, especially if one of the bulls ends up being transferred out in the next ~5 or so years.

Jambo said:
If I'm not mistaken, Raja's move to Columbus has been pushed back to earlier next year, so Samudra likely won't be transferred across until a little later than that. Maliha's turning 20 next year so it's vital she conceives now rather than later.

I'm not too sure why Jade was AI'd, and she wasn't - perhaps she had a failed procedure. Time is certainly ticking with her, but it would be wonderful to see all three girls deliver calves in a cohort setting.
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Where did you hear that Raja's move had been pushed to 2026? The last update I'd heard was later this year. However it wouldn't surprise me in the least if it has been pushed back since Phoebe very well may not give birth until November. Would be a shame, but I can understand Columbus not wanting to bring in a new animal when they've got two very young calves on the ground, an uninregrated group and a socially testy second bull onsite already.

Re Maliha, I would be shocked if she wasn't AI'd. If I had to wager a guess, I would say she likely was AI'd around the same time as Jade in hopes of a two-calf set in 2024. I would imagine they're continuing to try AI with her until she gets pregnant or Samudra arrives.
A hard situation overall, it's frustrating but both facilities feel backed into their own corners here.
 
Frankie_number_1_fan said:
Where did you hear that Raja's move had been pushed to 2026? The last update I'd heard was later this year. However it wouldn't surprise me in the least if it has been pushed back since Phoebe very well may not give birth until November. Would be a shame, but I can understand Columbus not wanting to bring in a new animal when they've got two very young calves on the ground, an uninregrated group and a socially testy second bull onsite already.
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Frankie_number_1_fan said:
Re Maliha, I would be shocked if she wasn't AI'd. If I had to wager a guess, I would say she likely was AI'd around the same time as Jade in hopes of a two-calf set in 2024. I would imagine they're continuing to try AI with her until she gets pregnant or Samudra arrives.
A hard situation overall, it's frustrating but both facilities feel backed into their own corners here.
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I'm sure I read it somewhere on a facebook post. There's a guy who's a regular to Saint Louis and shares updates via comments (I can't find his account now for the life of me now though).

Earlier reports from this year communicate that he's supposed to transfer later this year, but I'm also wondering whether Columbus's new calf may also be playing a part in the move being slightly delayed.

Re. Maliha, since AI is a costly procedure (especially when they're using sperm from another facility), it's possible they've just elected to wait it out until Samudra arrives and can get it done naturally. If they've AI'd her many times without success I would be concerned, especially due to her age now, but some cows do have this issue when they cycle irregularly.
 
Jambo said:
I'm sure I read it somewhere on a facebook post. There's a guy who's a regular to Saint Louis and shares updates via comments (I can't find his account now for the life of me now though).

Earlier reports from this year communicate that he's supposed to transfer later this year, but I'm also wondering whether Columbus's new calf may also be playing a part in the move being slightly delayed.

Re. Maliha, since AI is a costly procedure (especially when they're using sperm from another facility), it's possible they've just elected to wait it out until Samudra arrives and can get it done naturally. If they've AI'd her many times without success I would be concerned, especially due to her age now, but some cows do have this issue when they cycle irregularly.
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I believe I know which Facebook account you're talking about! He seems like a trustworthy source, and that combined with the other limiting factors at Columbus now/in the near future it makes sense.

It would be disappointing to see St Louis gamble Maliha's reproductive future by waiting for Samudra though. AI isn't easy or cheap, but one can only hope they're giving her every chance to become pregnant. It would be a masisve disappointment to lose her as a breeding cow. It is possible Samudra could suceed in short order, but with her turning 20 next year it does unfortunately look like her time is running out if it hasn't already. Fingers crossed she is pregnant now with a calf due in 2026 or 2027!
 
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