Saint Louis Zoo announces one of its Asian elephants is pregnant
ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The Saint Louis Zoo shared an exciting announcement Thursday that one of its Asian elephants is pregnant.
The Zoo says 23-year-old "Rani" is pregnant and 26-year-old "Raja" is the father.
Rani is part of a nine-member, three-generation elephant family that includes Ellie (mother), Maliha, Jade (daughter), Priya, Donna, Sri, Pearl and Raja at the Zoo’s River’s Edge and Elephant Woods habitats. Rani and Ellie arrived at the Saint Louis Zoo in 2001 from the Jacksonville Zoo, where Rani was born in 1996.
Raja is locally famous for being the first Asian elephant ever born at the Saint Louis Zoo in 1992. This calf will be his fifth offspring.
An elephant pregnancy lasts about 22 months and a newborn weighs about 250-350 pounds. The Zoo says the sex of the calf is unknown at this point, but the mother will receive plenty of checkups by the Zoo’s elephant care team.
“We’re looking forward to the new calf joining our multi-generational elephant family, and we’re optimistic that everything will go well for Rani,” said Katie Pilgram-Kloppe, Acting Curator of River’s Edge at the Saint Louis Zoo, and Assistant Director, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute Center for Asian Elephant Conservation. “Breeding and calf rearing is one part of our robust, multi-faceted animal welfare program, and important to the elephants’ social structure. Our experienced, professional elephant care team is providing exceptional care for Rani during her pregnancy, including customized exercise and birth plans.”
