Amazingly, for many years they managed 2.4 Asian elephants in a single house with one concrete yard and a couple of service corridors leading to the grass paddock Luka is pictured in above. This was even when the bulls were mature enough to breed (Pugli had a live birth as early as 1984) as they were both about 20 years old when the separate bull house was built. Around the same time as the bull house, a second grass paddock and service yards were created (the one not really visible on foot leading down the hill behind the sambar deer), and a bull would often spend time here while another would be in the bull yards. When the bulls were given their own building, Port Lympne accepted (bought?) the two Asian females from Windsor (Yasmin and Davida), which made 6 cows (including the 4 original females).
When the Rotterdam and after the Austrian cows arrived, a sand paddock was created using the field above the Sambar deer, and this house the breeding Rotterdam females for much of their time at Port Lympne.
Although the story of Asian elephants at Port Lympne is a relentlessly tragic one, I will miss seeing the Asian herd out on the hillside field from over a mile away. For many years, you only saw elephants against concrete, bricks or railings, so as a kid it was a different feeling seeing the herd in the distance under huge thunderclouds.
Thanks for that Johnstoni,
Sadly i did really know about John Aspinall until after the Asian Elephants left Port Lympne.
I thought the African Elephants looked great in those fields at Port Lympne when i visited May 2008.To see them from a mile away whilst looking at the Rhinos,Deer or whatever was just a great sight
Thanks for the help again,
I also rather miss the Asian elephants at Port Lympne, although I never thought their housing was up to much, and it must have been horrible for them living there in the winter months.
I remember one trip to Kent in 2000 when both elephant herds were at their peak - 16 Africans at Howletts and 16 Asians at Port Lympne - Quite a sight!
Found these two videos of Luka at Lympne on YouTube. Not sure when they were filmed, but they were uploaded 2006, so I don't imagine it was long before he left.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zghGDcAfGBw]Elephant Summer[/ame]
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrb1RkMrw4M&feature=fvw]The Mighty Luka[/ame]
I read on the elephant database that Luka had a son born at Longleat (Longleat's only calf) which was sadly killed the day it was born. Did Luka go from Longleat to Lympne or was he on loan?
Luka never actually lived at Longleat - the mother Johti was sent to Belfast on breeding loan and returned pregnant. The calf was killed by an African bull, I suspect Tembo (of Colchester fame) who was at Longleat at the time. The same pair produced a calf at Woburn in 1990 which was stillborn. Luka has been around a bit:
Born 13.04.1973 at Belgrade
? to Osijek
10.10.1986 to Woburn
08.10.1991 to Belfast (loan from Chipperfields)
29.11.1997 to Port Lympne (sold to John Aspinall)
21.06.2006 to Terra Natura, Benidorm
His wandering ways look set to continue as Terra Natura are gradually disposing of their animal stock. He is only 36 years old and should have plenty of years left in him yet.
Found these two videos of Luka at Lympne on YouTube. Not sure when they were filmed, but they were uploaded 2006, so I don't imagine it was long before he left. Elephant Summer The Mighty Luka
