Not the way an elephant wants to be seen. Captive elephant
That I am not in favor of zoos or captive breeding is no secret. I have talked about that here and on "Focus Earth with Bob Woodruff." (Age of Extinction: August 22, 2009)
So when a reader directs my attention to an article in the Washington Post about the celebration of Asian Elephant Day, I trek to a newsstand and pay the premium out-of-state price for the paper. I am immediately saddend by the photograph---albeit skillfully and brilliantly composed by Post photographer Ricky Carioti--of a 7-year-old elephant named Kandula, who was born at the zoo. (Not the photo shown above and no link on the Post site, so far.) Kandula's situation is the kind that I find particularly distressing. He was born in captivity; he will die in captivity, never knowing the life his DNA promised.
The Washington Post article by staff writer Michael S. Rosenwald cheerfully describes the glee of children visiting the zoo and the pride of the Sri Lankan dignitaries in attendance and explains the well-documented importance of elephants to the Sri Lankan culture. Kandula is the son of an orphaned elephant given to the National Zoo in 1976. A nice sanctuary would have been a better option. Learn about The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee here. The David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust is another. It maintains a sanctuary that provides loving, on-site care of African elephants and rhinos. Their work is so regarded and critical that dedicated workers now take precious care of all kinds of orphaned wildlife babies. The Trust is also involved in conservation and de-snaring projects. Their work has been reported on "60 Minutes." Click here for update on original coverage.
The Post article reports that thousands of elephants live in Sri Lanka. Quite naturally, as this was not the focus of the article, it does not talk about the crisis of sorts reported here, which is apparently developing in Sri Lanka because so many of the domesticated elephants used in the religious ceremonies are dying of age, accident, or poaching. Soon the wild elephants will have to be captured and turned over to the custodians of the festivals. What that involves is unclear to me, but I am encouraged that Sri Lanka has a Department of Wildlife Conservation.
The article describes that elephants pee and poop a LOT, which children naturally find so fascinating. What the article leaves out is that elephants in their natural habitat roam hundreds of miles a day. Not so much in capitivity. Going in circles and back and forth in confinement does not count, in my book.
The good news is that elephants are loved, adored, respected, revered in Sri Lanka and in other parts of the world. You know the bad news.
Keep your eye on the good news and ensure that we reach for more of it. Stay alert. Stay informed. Stay involved. Consider supporting one of the fine organizations mentioned here. Tell me about others you favor.
Elephants have no one but you to help them. You're the one.
Comments
To keep from getting wild elephants they recently took 2 suckling calves that were around 2 or 3 years old from their Mothers at the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage and gave them as gifts to Temple of the Tooth in Kandy. Loved, adored, respected, revered are not words that can describe those babies or their mothers. Their Department of Wildlife Conservation could do nothing. It is just sad.
Excellent post! Thank you for putting the focus on Kandula. Bull elephants have it the worst of all elephants in captivity. Although a few zoos in Europe allow the bulls to stay with the females, in this country keep them separate, with the bulls relegated to the smallest enclosures.
There is another sanctuary in Calif. you should know about -- PAWS -- www DOT pawsweb DOT org, which has a campaign to rescue bulls.
The group In Defense of Animals is one of the leading advocates for eles in captivity -- www DOT savezooelephants DOT com
You will find loads of information on eles at www DOT elephantvoices DOT org, the website of noted researcher Joyce Poole.
Rita --
Thank you for mentioning that terrible incident!
And elephants are supposedly Thailand's national treasure, but they are treated horribly.
There's a big disconnect between what Asian governments say about elephants and how they treat them.
what a load of rubbish. if you don't know what you are writing about, don't write anything. as a sri lankan i find this article very insulting. in modern sri lanka, wild elephants are never captured to be domesticated. it's against the law. elephants are revered in our culture, in fact killing an elephant carries the same punishment as killing a human. the current generation of domestic elephants are descendants of previous domesticated elephants. elephants are very intelligent and social animals and have been domesticated in sri lanka for over 2000 years, given the right environment and a high level of care, they are just as happy in a domestic environment as a wild environment (as a dog would be).
Elephants in circuses - no way! Elephants in zoos? Tough call. Yes, it's a shame to see such magnificent and intelligent creatures cooped up. On the other hand, zoos might be the last refuge for many large animals as we continually encroach on their habitat and hunt and poach them. Also, as an occasional consultant to the New England Aquarium I see people go in absolutely ignorant about animals and conservation coming out with a deeper appreciation for these things. Very thoughtful article, Liz; keep putting 'em out there.
ignorance is bliss, the author of this bad piece is saying nothing but the same ignorant garbage that all the animal extremists puke up every opportunity they get...do some research and why don't you all go talk to the PROFESSIONALS that actually work with elephants.
Thanks to everyone who took the time to respond, comment, and even add additional information. Those of you who read this page know that the articles are researched and links are provided for you to check things out for yourself. Information in the article about the behavior of elephants was acquired from professionals involved in animal sanctuaries. The rude remark may be removed, but I will try to preserve it. Constructive comments are always welcomed and healthy dialogue is so important. I enjoy being a part of it. These are passionate topics and people can easily become sensitive or defensive. I understand. That is why I am so careful to present accurate information from reliable sources. No one is perfect and if I make an error, I'll be happy to correct it and apologize. The purpose is not to offend anyone, but to advocate for the animals. Thanks for reading and thank you for caring about animals.
An elephant is a lifelong commitment for the handler and with the urbanization of Asia, the traditions of living with elephants is what is suffering. The people whose lives and work involved these elephants sre experienceing a terrible loss also and should be mentioned.
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