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The following is a list of culturally or scientifically notable elephants.
| | This article needs additional citations for verification .(February 2024) |
The following is a list of culturally or scientifically notable elephants.
Topsy was a female Asian elephant who was electrocuted at Coney Island, New York, in January 1903. Born in Southeast Asia around 1875, Topsy was secretly brought into the United States soon thereafter and added to the herd of performing elephants at the Forepaugh Circus, who fraudulently advertised her as the first elephant born in the United States. During her 25 years at Forepaugh, Topsy gained a reputation as a "bad" elephant and, after killing a spectator in 1902, was sold to Coney Island's Sea Lion Park. Sea Lion was leased out at the end of the 1902 season and during the construction of the park that took its place, Luna Park, Topsy was used in publicity stunts and also involved in several well-publicized incidents, attributed to the actions of either her drunken handler or the park's new publicity-hungry owners, Frederic Thompson and Elmer "Skip" Dundy.
The Singapore Zoo, formerly known as the Singapore Zoological Gardens or Mandai Zoo, is a 28 hectares zoo located on the margins of Upper Seletar Reservoir within Singapore's heavily forested central catchment area. It is operated by the Mandai Wildlife Group, which also manages the neighbouring Night Safari, River Wonders, Bird Paradise as well as the forthcoming Rainforest Wild Park.
The Asian elephant, also known as the Asiatic elephant, is a species of elephant distributed throughout the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, from India in the west, Nepal in the north, Sumatra in the south, and to Borneo in the east. Three subspecies are recognised—E. m. maximus, E. m. indicus and E. m. sumatranus. The Asian elephant is characterised by its long trunk with a single finger-like processing; large tusks in males; small ears folded laterally in contrast to African elephants; and wrinkled grey skin. The skin is smoother than African elephants and may be depigmented on the trunk, ears or neck. Adult males average 4 t in weight, and females 2.7 t.
Mysore Zoo, officially known as Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens, is a composite of zoological gardens and animal park located in the southern Indian city of Mysore, Karnataka. Stretching across a 157-acre (64 ha)-expanse and situated at about 700 metres from Mysore Palace, it is the oldest zoo in India and one of the oldest in the world. One of the most popular zoos in India and one of the city's most popular attractions, it is home to a wide range of over 168 species.
The Born Free Foundation is an international wildlife charity that campaigns to "Keep Wildlife in the Wild". It protects wild animals in their natural habitat, campaigns against the keeping of wild animals in captivity and rescues wild animals in need. It also promotes compassionate conservation, which takes into account the welfare of individual animals in conservation initiatives. Born Free also creates and provides educational materials and activities that reflect the charity's values.
The Sri Lankan elephant is native to Sri Lanka and one of three recognised subspecies of the Asian elephant. It is the type subspecies of the Asian elephant and was first described by Carl Linnaeus under the binomial Elephas maximus in 1758. The Sri Lankan elephant population is now largely restricted to the dry zone in the north, east and southeast of Sri Lanka. Elephants are present in Udawalawe National Park, Yala National Park, Lunugamvehera National Park, Wilpattu National Park and Minneriya National Park but also live outside protected areas. It is estimated that Sri Lanka has the highest density of elephants in Asia. Human-elephant conflict is increasing due to conversion of elephant habitat to settlements and permanent cultivation.
Tyke was a female African bush elephant from Mozambique who performed with Circus International of Honolulu, Hawaii. On August 20, 1994, during a performance at the Neal Blaisdell Center, she killed her trainer, Allen Campbell, and seriously injured her groomer, Dallas Beckwith. Tyke then ran from the arena and through the streets of the Kakaʻako central business district for more than thirty minutes. Unable to calm the elephant, local police opened fire on the animal, which collapsed from the wounds and died. While the majority of the attack in the arena was recorded on consumer videotape by several spectators, additional professional video footage captured the attack on local publicist Steve Hirano and the shooting of Tyke herself.
Noah's Ark Zoo Farm is a 100-acre (40 ha) zoo developed on a working farm in Wraxall, North Somerset, 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Bristol, England.
Elephants are an integral part of the Mysore Dasara Festival. The elephants form the core of the Mysore Dasara procession on the Vijayadashami day. The lead elephant carries the Golden Howdah with the Goddess Chamundeshwari in it. The Golden Howdah weighs 750 kilograms and is made of gold.
Balarama was the lead elephant of the Mysore Dasara procession and carried the idol of goddess Chamundeshwari on the fabled Golden Howdah thirteen times between 1999 and 2011. Balarama was a bull born about 1958 and was accompanied in the procession by other Dasara Elephants. Of the many elephants participating, Balarama was one of the star attractions when he carried on his back the sacred idol of goddess Chamundeshwari in the 750 kilograms (1,650 lb) golden howdah on the auspicious 10th day of Dasara celebrations.
Mona was a 7,800 pound Asian elephant on exhibit at the Birmingham Zoo in Birmingham, Alabama. Mona's age was contested. According to zoo officials, she was born in the wild around 1947. An entry in a stud book maintained by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums gives an approximate birth year of 1951.
Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage, is a captive breeding and conservation institute for wild Asian elephants located at Pinnawala village, 13 km (8.1 mi) northeast of Kegalle town in Sabaragamuwa Province of Sri Lanka. Pinnawala has the largest herd of captive elephants in the world. In 2023, there were 71 elephants, including 30 males and 41 females from 3 generations, living in Pinnawala.
Gita was a 48-year-old Asian elephant who died at the Los Angeles Zoo on June 10, 2006. Gita's death prompted dozens of animal rights activists, including In Defense of Animals, to accuse the zoo of neglecting and endangering its animals by placing them in unsatisfactory living conditions, and fueled a years-long debate in the city government over the ethics of keeping elephants in a zoo at all.
Carol Buckley is an American elephant caregiver, specializing in the trauma recovery and on-going physical care of captive elephants.
Elephants can be found in various captive facilities such as a zoo, sanctuary, circus, or camp, usually under veterinary supervision. They can be used for educational, entertainment, or work purposes.
Arjuna was an Asian elephant who, from 2012 to 2019, was the lead elephant and the carrier of the Golden Howdah at the Mysore Dasara. He was named after Arjuna, the third of the Pandava brothers from the Hindu epic Mahabharatha. Arjuna was part of a Karnataka Forest Department to tackle wild elephants across western Ghats of Karnataka and also operated in many states for capturing wild elephants. Arjuna died in combat on 4 December 2023.
Chengalloor Dakshayani was a female Asian elephant owned by Travancore Devaswom Board and kept at the Chenkalloor Mahadeva Temple in Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, India, which at the time of her death on 5 February 2019 was believed to be the oldest elephant in captivity in Asia. She was also known as Gaja Raja Dakshayani and as "Dakshayanamma" and "Gaja Muthassi".
Dan Albert John Koehl is a French-Swedish zookeeper, elephant trainer, and stablemaster. An author of the Elephant Encyclopedia, he has been described as "one of Europe's most renowned experts on elephants".
Kaavan is a male Asian elephant known as the "world's loneliest elephant" since his partner, 22-year-old Saheli, died in 2012. Kaavan was gifted by the government of Sri Lanka to Pakistan in 1985. He remained at the Islamabad Zoo until November 2020, when he was moved to a sanctuary in Cambodia, in response to a campaign launched by local and international animal rights activists, led by American singer Cher.
Vishwa Ma'ali, commonly known as Mali, was a female Asian elephant who lived at Manila Zoo in Manila, Philippines. Born in Sri Lanka, she was given as a gift to First Lady Imelda Marcos by the Sri Lankan government in 1981 and lived at Manila Zoo from then on. For most of her life, she was the only elephant in the Philippines and was a subject of concern for animal welfare advocates. She was described as the world's "saddest" elephant.