North American Asian Elephant Population 2024

Frankie_number_1_fan said:
Some updates from Columbus:

- During a keeper talk today, it was stated that they do not have any confirmed pregnancies. However, I am taking this information with a slight grain of salt considering that Columbus historically waits until the last few months of gestation to announce pregnancies. The keeper did confirm that Sabu did breed all three females and that they are "very hopeful".

- Johnson has begun introductions to the girls and Frankie. If any of the females aren't pregnant, he'll probably get the job done in short order :p

- Due to the new yard construction, the zoo doesn't have any timeline for Raja's arrival. More than likely, we can expect him to be transferred no earlier than late October.

- Differing from their last statement on this (which I did hear from a Docent), Phoebe is in remarkably good reproductive health and they plan on breeding her into her 40s.
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Thanks for the update. I do wonder if they will be swapping Raja for Johnson at some point? I do not recall if St Louis is planning to replace him with another bull.
 
ZCChip said:
Thanks for the update. I do wonder if they will be swapping Raja for Johnson at some point? I do not recall if St Louis is planning to replace him with another bull.
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Columbus plans to house both Johnson and Raja as breeding bulls. Presumably one will be housed with Frankie once he is seperated from the breeding herd in a bachelor situation and the other will be with the cows. Columbus is doing everything they can to grow their herd and nothing the zoo has stated indicates that either move is a temporary stop.

St Louis is currently slated to receive Samudra from Oregon however! He is expected to arrive next year.
 
E Maximus said:
Sunny and Phoebe are both pregnant and due in 2025! Sabu is the father of both.
Something BIG is happening at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and we couldn’t wait to share the news with you! We’ve got a surprise that’s sure to delight... | By Columbus Zoo and AquariumFacebook
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Super exciting news!! Even more exciting in that Sabu is the sire of both of these calves considering he has no other relatives in the population currently.

However, I am a bit disappointed that Rudy was not also announced to be pregnant (since she’s already 22 and very close to the breeding cutoff age) but I have my fingers crossed that she will be due in 2026 since Sabu only recently moved back to Cincy or Johnson gets the job done here soon.
 
E Maximus said:
Sunny and Phoebe are both pregnant and due in 2025! Sabu is the father of both.
Something BIG is happening at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and we couldn’t wait to share the news with you! We’ve got a surprise that’s sure to delight... | By Columbus Zoo and AquariumFacebook
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A new expecting first time mom! I’m so glad Sunny is now pregnant and expecting her first calf! And I’m so excited Sabu was successful in breeding at Columbus! Currently now, we’re at I think now in total we have a confirmed 7 Asian Elephants pregnant and expecting calves between late 2024 and 2025 across zoos in the United States.

1.) Shanti at the Houston Zoo (due late 2024).

2.) Jade at the Saint Louis Zoo (due late 2024 to early 2025).

3.) Rosanna at the ABQ BioPark Zoo (due late 2024 to early 2025).

4.) Rose Tu at the Oregon Zoo (due early 2025).

5.) Achara at the Oklahoma City Zoo (due summer 2025).

6.) Sunny at the Columbus Zoo (due 2025).

7.) Phoebe at the Columbus Zoo (due 2025).
 
E Maximus said:
Sunny and Phoebe are both pregnant and due in 2025! Sabu is the father of both.
Something BIG is happening at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and we couldn’t wait to share the news with you! We’ve got a surprise that’s sure to delight... | By Columbus Zoo and AquariumFacebook
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Absolutely wonderful news for Columbus and particularly for Sabu, as he is genetically valuable being wild-born and 0 living relatives, and also the odds for baby elephants in Cincinnati have significantly gone up!
 
E Maximus said:
Sunny and Phoebe are both pregnant and due in 2025! Sabu is the father of both.
Something BIG is happening at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and we couldn’t wait to share the news with you! We’ve got a surprise that’s sure to delight... | By Columbus Zoo and AquariumFacebook
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Fabulous news! I'm surprised to see an announcement so soon but not surprised at all to see Phoebe (an experienced mom) and Sunny (who was all over Sabu immediately). Additionally these calves being born close together is ideal, and a first for Columbus! Not to mention these calves will be remarkably valuable. Fingers crossed Rudy is pregnant or will be soon now that Johnson is there! If anyone can get the job done, it would be him :p
 
Nile Hippo Expert said:
Absolutely wonderful news for Columbus and particularly for Sabu, as he is genetically valuable being wild-born and 0 living relatives, and also the odds for baby elephants in Cincinnati have significantly gone up!
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Sabu has still not been introduced to the Dublin herd and it could potentially be a while before he is. They tried a little while back in the summer and Yasmin and Anak did not take well to his presence in the slightest. So it might take a little longer then expected for elephant pregnancies in Cincinnati.
 
Jonathan Petersson said:
Sabu has still not been introduced to the Dublin herd and it could potentially be a while before he is. They tried a little while back in the summer and Yasmin and Anak did not take well to his presence in the slightest. So it might take a little longer then expected for elephant pregnancies in Cincinnati.
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Not surprising they might be stressed out by a bull, it's been half a decade since they've been with a bull! Sabu is a gentle animal, so hopefully he wins over Cinci's girls like he won over Columbus'!
 
Frankie_number_1_fan said:
Not surprising they might be stressed out by a bull, it's been half a decade since they've been with a bull! Sabu is a gentle animal, so hopefully he wins over Cinci's girls like he won over Columbus'!
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Haha Sabu being gentle depends on if the cows know how to say stop to him or not. From what I've heard it sounds like the Dublin girls are having a hard time getting the point across to him similar to why he was not allowed to be in the same space as Mai Thai and Schottzie back in the day. Hopefully you are correct and it is just a thing that will take some time. Sabu is definitely a lot bigger then Dublin's Upali so regardless would be quite nerve wracking for them.
 
Jonathan Petersson said:
Haha Sabu being gentle depends on if the cows know how to say stop to him or not. From what I've heard it sounds like the Dublin girls are having a hard time getting the point across to him similar to why he was not allowed to be in the same space as Mai Thai and Schottzie back in the day. Hopefully you are correct and it is just a thing that will take some time. Sabu is definitely a lot bigger then Dublin's Upali so regardless would be quite nerve wracking for them.
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I am sure it will change once they cycle.
 
E Maximus said:
Sunny and Phoebe are both pregnant and due in 2025! Sabu is the father of both.
Something BIG is happening at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, and we couldn’t wait to share the news with you! We’ve got a surprise that’s sure to delight... | By Columbus Zoo and AquariumFacebook
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Well done Sabu! I'm extremely glad both Cincy and Columbus's efforts both paid off with Sabu; giving him another opportunity to breed with viable cows. As has been stated, he is a very very valuable bull being one of the very few unrepresented wild born bulls in the region.

Fingers crossed both pregnancies progress well, it will be awesome to also have two younger calves on the ground for Frankie who will also benefit socially.

I too was disappointed to not hear of any announcement regarding Rudy - they would have an idea of if she was pregnant by this point. Considering her age however, it's not a surprise. She isn't an incredibly valuable female, and she will still hopefully still have the opportunity to be a great aunty to the upcoming calves.
 
Excellent news! Of course, having Rudy conceive would be ideal as well, but unfortunately between the fact that she’s been artificially inseminated, as well exposed to a proven breeding bull for the better part of two years, unfortunately I just don’t think it’s going to happen for her. Of course never say never, and hopefully Johnson can work some magic on her, but even if she never conceives, as mentioned, she should be a wonderful auntie, and genetically we’re not losing anything thanks to her full sister Sundara.
 
There’s another thing to note about Rudy that MIGHT be another potential possibility. I remember with Omaha when Kiki who is an African Elephant but when she was pregnant the zoo was actually having a hard time determining if she was or not. Her hormone levels kept varying, they were actually having a hard time finding the calf during the ultrasounds. She and Claire were due roughly the same time but Claire was much easier to tell if she was pregnant, but Kiki for a while was not the case. I’m just saying that might be another possibility is that the zoo might be having a hard time determining if Rudy is pregnant herself too like Omaha did with Kiki. I don’t know obviously cause I don’t work with those elephants, I’m not there on the ground. That or Rudy might of bred at a different time with Sabu too than Phoebe and Sunny did but I honestly don’t know. I just think there’s a lot that could possibly happen there still with Rudy.
 
John Marchwick said:
There’s another thing to note about Rudy that MIGHT be another potential possibility. I remember with Omaha when Kiki who is an African Elephant but when she was pregnant the zoo was actually having a hard time determining if she was or not. Her hormone levels kept varying, they were actually having a hard time finding the calf during the ultrasounds. She and Claire were due roughly the same time but Claire was much easier to tell if she was pregnant, but Kiki for a while was not the case. I’m just saying that might be another possibility is that the zoo might be having a hard time determining if Rudy is pregnant herself too like Omaha did with Kiki. I don’t know obviously cause I don’t work with those elephants, I’m not there on the ground. That or Rudy might of bred at a different time with Sabu too than Phoebe and Sunny did but I honestly don’t know. I just think there’s a lot that could possibly happen there still with Rudy.
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I haven't given up on Rudy just yet. Sabu clearly bred with Sunny very early on, and bred with Phoebe very soon after they were introduced. Neither fact is surprising considering Sunny immediately took to Sabu and Phoebe is an experienced breeder.
Rudy on the other hand is a more cautious cow. She mostly avoided Sabu until late last year/early this year, meaning she could easily be due in 2026.
Just from a publicity standpoint, it makes little sense for the zoo to announce a pregnancy nearly 2 years in advance. It wouldn't surprise me in the least that if she is indeed pregnant that the zoo would wait until next year to announce the pregnancy.

That being said, if she's not pregnant then Johnson could still very likely suceed with her. While her likelihood of having a healthy calf is rapidly decreasing, she wouldn't be the first cow to have her firstborn in her 20's.
 
I am sure with more exposure and time with Johnson, Rudy will warm up and hopefully get pregnant. The key is exposure.22 years old is on the tail end for the first calf so they better get on it.

Johnson is an extremely experienced bull. Lol.
 
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