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https://apnews.com/article/elephant-herd-move-zoo-melbourne-australia-be328c269b1f7797fda2cd542e6b27a5>
"MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Elephants trumpeted, touched trunks and flapped
their oversized ears upon reuniting with their herd after a complex, five-day
move from an urban Australian zoo to a much larger enclosure.
The nine Asian elephants were transported 40 kilometers (25 miles) from
Melbourne Zoo in the heart of the city to an enclosure 10 times bigger at the
Werribee Open Range Zoo, Zoos Victoria said on Thursday. Police escorts and
synchronized traffic lights aided their journey in three convoys of trucks.
The animals’ reactions demonstrated they were happy with their move, the
elephants’ manager Erin Gardiner said.
“The behaviors that we saw that indicated to us that they felt really
comfortable and also excited to see each other were lots of ear flapping, trunk
touching, lots of vocalizations,” Gardiner said.
“So, roaring, trumpeting, tweaks and squeaks. And so all those interactions
helped us understand that they are happy to see each other and feeling
comfortable. By the afternoon, those calves were playing together and
interacting and I just couldn’t believe how well they traveled,” Gardiner
added.
Planning the move began almost two years ago by training the elephants to enter
and exit the transport crates, veterinarian Bonnie McMeekin said."
Via Frederick Wilson II.
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
