Leading Elephant Expert Joins In Defense of Animals in Condemning St. Louis Zoo for Deadly Breeding Practices

San Rafael, Calif. – In Defense of Animals (IDA), joined by a top authority on elephant behavior and biology, today strongly criticized the St. Louis Zoo for recklessly breeding elephants. The charge follows an announcement by the zoo that the elephant Rani is again pregnant, despite serious complications following the last two births at the zoo and the threat posed by a deadly elephant virus.

In a statement released today, Dr. Keith Lindsay, a conservation biologist with thirty years experience studying wild elephants in Africa with the Amboseli Trust for Elephants, stated:

“Elephants deserve our respect and human decency, not confinement and control in degrading, dangerous conditions. St Louis Zoo is a classic example of how not to keep elephants in captivity. The problems are many and easy to see: eight elephants in a subdivided enclosure of just over an acre when they really need square miles, physical ailments resulting from the lack of movement, a cold climate requiring even closer confinement for months on end, and an incurable disease that is more likely to spread in such a tightly-packed group. How can zoo authorities be thinking of breeding under such conditions, inflicting additional stress on the mothers and bringing tiny calves into such a world of suffering?”

With the zoo’s two most recent births, each calf suffered life-threatening situations unseen in wild-living elephants. Maliha, born in 2006, failed to gain weight when mother Ellie didn’t produce enough milk and required extraordinary measures to insure her survival. Jade, born in 2007, was rejected and attacked by her mother on more than one occasion, suffering “superficial abrasions and contusions” during one incident, according to zoo records.

Then in February 2009, Jade contracted a deadly elephant virus that mainly strikes elephants in captivity and has killed 35 percent of Asian elephants born in U.S. zoos over the last 12 years. She is one of the rare survivors of the disease, though she suffered an unprecedented relapse in December. The virus also infected cage-mate Maliha, who was non-symptomatic. There is a high risk that any elephant born at the St. Louis Zoo will contract the deadly virus.

“It is unconscionable for the St. Louis Zoo to continue breeding elephants, knowing full well that any infant born there faces a high risk of maternal rejection, disease and death,” says Catherine Doyle, IDA campaign director. “The zoo’s irresponsible actions have nothing to do with elephant conservation and everything to do with maximizing profits to be made from a new baby elephant. The Zoo should be condemned by anyone who cares about the well-being of elephants and their future on this planet.”

Dr. Lindsay continued: “The St. Louis Zoo’s justification for breeding elephants appears to include a ‘responsibility’ to save the species from extinction, but genuine conservationists see no role for captive breeding in the preservation of wild populations. Elephant conservation requires money for the serious work taking place in Asia and Africa, and zoos (along with other organizations) can help with fund-raising, but there is no need to keep elephants in appalling conditions to make this effort possible.”

For more information, please visit www.HelpElephants.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 21, 2010

Contact: Catherine Doyle, 323-301-5730, zoos@idausa.org