Australian Asian Elephant Population 2025
- Thread starter Zoofan15
- Start date
Werribee’s theoretical capacity was reported to be in the 40’s, but considering they have two bull paddocks and three cow paddocks, this will not be achieved given the inevitable production of bull calves. Long term they aim to house two adult bulls; alongside the matriarchal herd. It’s previously been reported Werribee could grow the matriarchal herd into the 20’s. It currently numbers eight elephants and I feel like mid to late teens is a more realistic expectation of numbers.
Dubbo have five paddocks, which currently house four groups of elephants (three bulls and the cows). They have the most limited capacity of all three open range zoos; but long term, plan to build a new barn (intended to house the entire matriarchal herd for an extended period over winter).
Monarto plan to have five spaces for their elephants to occupy. The aim is to intergrate four cows from three herds, so assuming that can be achieved; they’ll house their elephants in two groups (bull seperate).
Zoos Victoria - additional information:
Melbourne Zoo elephants move to Werribee
Luk Chai’s current weight is 4280kg. I was advised by staff in December 2023 that he’d just reached 4000kg that week, so he’s gained almost 300kg in 14 months. His sire (Gung) was reported to be the heaviest elephant in Australia last year at over 5000kg.
The zoo are hoping to transfer the cows/calves in the coming days; though this is reliant on weather and their cooperation:
The remaining eight elephants at Melbourne Zoo are expected to join Luk Chai at Werribee in the coming days. Exactly when, zookeepers do not know – it is up to the elephants to move voluntarily into their crates, and factors like the weather and health can affect how soon they move.
Additional video here:
https://www.thechronicle.com.au/new...ge-zoo/video/fd91c7839180cc027525ac6ec1630e10
Melbourne Zoo elephants move to Werribee
Luk Chai’s current weight is 4280kg. I was advised by staff in December 2023 that he’d just reached 4000kg that week, so he’s gained almost 300kg in 14 months. His sire (Gung) was reported to be the heaviest elephant in Australia last year at over 5000kg.
The zoo are hoping to transfer the cows/calves in the coming days; though this is reliant on weather and their cooperation:
The remaining eight elephants at Melbourne Zoo are expected to join Luk Chai at Werribee in the coming days. Exactly when, zookeepers do not know – it is up to the elephants to move voluntarily into their crates, and factors like the weather and health can affect how soon they move.
Additional video here:
https://www.thechronicle.com.au/new...ge-zoo/video/fd91c7839180cc027525ac6ec1630e10
Jonathan Petersson
Well-Known Member
Is there a specific reason Kulab has not had a calf since Ongard?
Unfortunately Kulab suffered a prolapsed uterus during the birth of Ongard in 2010. Ongard was a large calf (142kg) and it was a difficult labour, with the calf becoming stuck at one point.
Kulab has recovered well, but the decision has been made not to breed from her again. It’s a shame because she’s unrepresented in the region following Ongard’s export, but her health must come first. She has a strong bond with Num-Oi and on my last visit was actively watching over her calf Kati. Num-Oi was previously Kulab’s strongest source of support when he gave birth to Ongard.
I wonder why they view the risk to great to cow Kulab to great for her not to be re-mated (Bong Su (*re-edit..., mea maxima culpa) was just a big bull and consequently so was her first calf ..., which may have precipitated her having issues with the birthing process. Any particular reason for that?
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Bong Su being the sire of Kulab’s calf surely contributed to the calf’s large frame; though the calf was reportedly overdue, which added to its weight. Kulab was also 10 years old at the time, though I note cows have given birth at younger ages without issue.
I asked when I visited in November 2023 and was told that Kulab had recently undergone a scan to assess her reproductive system. She’s made an excellent recovery, but another pregnancy carries a high risk of a repeat occurrence/further damage and they’ve decided not to take the risk. She has a fulfilling life and remains an integral part of the herd (tipped to possibly take over as matriarch following the move to Werribee).
The calf was pretty much on time, born a little less than 22 months following conception.
The issue here was the period of her labour which was prolonged likely a result of her calves size which led to the difficulties that were experienced.
It’s very fortunate the calf was born alive from what I’ve read. Apparently after labour stopped/started overnight and the calf became stuck in the birth canal for around four hours, Kulab was taken for a walk in the paddock, which brought on the birth. She had previously been trying to do headstands in the barn, with clear parallels between the difficult (and longer) labour of Porntip earlier that year.
Yep, I’ve found an article citing 650 days for the gestation. Somebody on here noted he was overdue, but appears to have been mistaken.
I remember watching the episode of this on TV. It was said Kulab concieved in late November; so if her gestation was 650 it would place her conception date to be November 30, 2008.
Kulab went into labour the previous afternoon and was in a on/off labour all night long. Once the morning rolled around keepers realised there was an issue considering elephants usually give birth overnight and she'd been in labour for more than twelve hours at that point in time.
Around 8 am the keepers took her and Num Oi out into the main habitat to allow her to get some movement and hopefully relax her muscles (as per Thomas Hildebrandt's advice) and she delivered Ongard within minutes of walking out! It was awesome to see Num Oi's maternal skills kick into play straight away, helping the keepers protect Ongard from Kulab who was very obviously quite distressed at that point in time.
This really highlights the advantages of free contact in those early years, when keepers (and the Berlin team) essentially fulfilled the role of midwives to the elephants, that would otherwise be undertaken by more experienced cows in the herd. Not advocating for or against protected contact here, merely making an observation.
It’s fortunate that the Melbourne herd now has three viable cows for the next cohort that have all given birth before (three times in the case of Dokkoon and Num-Oi) and by witnesssing these next births in a herd context, Aiyara and Kati will gain valuable experience for their own future births (which the more experienced females will surely guide them through).
Num-Oi was so amazing with Ongard. I understand she formed a very close bond with Man Jai too given he was born days after the loss of her own calf, Sanook. He certainly gave Num-Oi something positive to focus on; and again when Willow passed three years later.
Num-Oi will no doubt be an incredible grandmother to Kati’s future calves. Dokkoon always seems to have her head in the clouds, to the point I’d say her less experienced daughter is a more attentive mother when it comes to their respective calves. At least Aiyara has benefited from the freedom, hitting milestones well ahead of her peers!
Melbourne Zoo’s elephant herd have now all made the move to Werribee Open Range Zoo:
How Zoos Victoria moved elephant herd to new home across the city
1.0 Luk Chai (04/07/2009) Gung x Thong Dee
0.1 Mek Kapah (00/00/1973) Imported 1978
0.1 Dokkoon (00/00/1993) Imported 2006
0.1 Kulab (00/00/2000) Imported 2006
0.1 Num-Oi (00/00/2001) Imported 2006
0.1 Mali (16/01/2010) Bong Su x Dokkoon
0.1 Aiyara (16/11/2022) Luk Chai x Dokkoon
1.0 Roi-Yim (25/11/2022) Luk Chai x Mali
0.1 Kati (01/01/2023) Luk Chai x Num Oi
How Zoos Victoria moved elephant herd to new home across the city
1.0 Luk Chai (04/07/2009) Gung x Thong Dee
0.1 Mek Kapah (00/00/1973) Imported 1978
0.1 Dokkoon (00/00/1993) Imported 2006
0.1 Kulab (00/00/2000) Imported 2006
0.1 Num-Oi (00/00/2001) Imported 2006
0.1 Mali (16/01/2010) Bong Su x Dokkoon
0.1 Aiyara (16/11/2022) Luk Chai x Dokkoon
1.0 Roi-Yim (25/11/2022) Luk Chai x Mali
0.1 Kati (01/01/2023) Luk Chai x Num Oi
Footage of the elephants at Werribee:
https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/v...n-home/video/436df431d91137fbb6475f385572e9aa
It’s clear the support network of the matriarchal herd has been invaluable to all eight elephants:
Mali (2010) is the only one of the adults who had never lived anywhere else, since her birth at Melbourne Zoo 15 years ago. The same can be said for Aiyara (2022), Roi-Yim (2022) and Kati (2023), though as juveniles they were expected to be less apprehensive about the transition, taking their lead from the adults in the herd.
It’s interesting to note that while only 15 years old, Australia’s first elephant calf is one of Werribee’s most well travelled elephants. Luk Chai was born at Taronga Zoo in 2009; transferred to Taronga Western Plains Zoo in 2015; transferred to Melbourne Zoo in 2020; and then transferred to Werribee Open Range Zoo in 2025. A fantastic example of how elephants are transferred between zoos for the progress of the breeding programme (with the move to Dubbo marking the beginning of his transition out of his natal herd; and his transfer to Melbourne marking the beginning of his journey as a breeding bull).
In the wild, bulls wouldn’t usually breed until a decade or so later; but Luk Chai has proved himself a socially competent bull and impressively succeeded in impregnating all three viable cows on the first cycle. Once the herd are settled at Werribee, the plan is for Luk Chai to sire a further cohort of three calves. Bearing in mind succession planning and other factors, it wouldn’t be surprising to see these calves born circa 2028 - ideally replicating the previous cohort being born within months of each other. It’s being optimal for their social development and a successive cohort around the time Aiyara and Kati turn six would be beneficial for them learning maternal skills via observation. Waiting until Roi-Yim turned six would additionally ensure he had begun his transition out of the matriarchal herd.
For those interested, I thought I'd also highlight some of the elephants in the video!
0.01 : (L-R) Dokkoon, Roi Yim, Aiyara, Mali
0.06 : Num Oi (in the foreground)
0.12: Mek Kapah
0.16 : Luk Chai
0.21 : Kati
0.24 : Kulab
Bong Su has one son in the region, which is Pathi Harn at Taronga Zoo.
Putra Mas has only sired daughters (one surviving, which is Kanlaya at Dubbo). A son from him would be a welcome addition to the breeding programme, but even if conceived this year, would be over a decade away from contributing to the breeding programme.
The following bulls are unrelated to both Aiyara and Kati:
1.0 Putra Mas (00/00/1989) Wild x Wild; Imported 1992
1.0 Kavi (17/07/2014) Upali x Yasmin; Imported 2020
1.0 Ashoka (19/08/2014) Upali x Anak; Imported 2020
1.0 Pathi Harn (10/03/2010) Bong Su x Porntip
Pathi Harn is related to Mali (half-siblings), meaning it’s unlikely he’d be the zoo’s new breeding bull.
There’s really two possibilities:
If Putra Mas proves himself a capable breeder at Monarto Safari Park, he could transfer to Werribee after siring 2-3 calves to Pak Boon and become their breeding bull.
However, what I think is more likely is that one of Sydney’s bulls would transfer to Werribee. Although they come from a well represented line globally, they’re unrelated to all cows in Australasia.
Another option I could see occurring is Werribee obtaining a bull from overseas (likely the USA). Zoos Victoria did send Ongard across back in 2018 so it's only right the USA repays the favour of sending over a founding bull for their population!
However I could see either of Sydney's bulls receiving application breeding wise going forward. It's important to consider that only only one will likely be placed in a breeding situation; meaning one of Dubbo or Werribee (whichever doesn't acquire one of those bulls) will have to source from elsewhere.
I agree it’s likely only one of Sydney Zoo’s will breed considering they’re half brothers.
Werribee’s need is definitely greater versus Dubbo, who have a genetically diverse population:
Gung is unrelated to 4/4 cows
Pathi Harn is unrelated to 2/4 cows
Sabai is unrelated to 3/4 cows
It doesn’t seem likely they’ll be breeding with Porntip now (if they were I’d have expected to have seen her conceive around the same time as Anjalee), so a second calf from Anjalee around seven years from now would tie in with Kanlaya producing her first calf at 14 years of age.
I would hope that if in the future there is a import option of a new bull that the line can carry some decent tusks to pass on into the breeding program!