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Sri Lankan elephant at National Zoo celebrated during Asian Elephant Day
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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.
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