June 11, 2008

Petal, the oldest African Elephant in an American Zoo, died at the age of 52. (Photo Courtesy of The Philadelphia Zoo.)

PHILADELPHIA -- Petal, a 52-year-old African elephant died, at the Philadelphia Zoo on June 9. She was the oldest elephant living in a U.S. Zoo.

Zoo officials who found her sleeping on her side at 7 a.m. immediately knew something was amiss, since she normally sleeps standing up. Despite attempts made by vets and zoo staff who rushed to Petal’s aid, she passed away two hours later.

“This is a great loss to the Philadelphia Zoo family and the greater Philadelphia community,” Zoo CEO, Vikram H. Dewan, told Pet Pulse.

Petal, who was born in Tanzania, had lived at the Philadelphia Zoo for 51 years. Statistically, Petal lived a long-life. According to Debbie Olson director of Conservation and Science Programs for the Indianapolis Zoo and African elephant studbook keeper for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, the average life expectancy for a female African Elephant is 41 years.

One of three African elephant residents at the Philadelphia Zoo, Petal was the dominant member of the herd and has been described by those who knew her as being dignified and even-tempered, and as a “charismatic icon.”

“Petal will be warmly remembered by staff and generations of visitors as one of our most beloved animals,” Dewan said. “She was a great ambassador for the endangered and threatened wild elephants of Africa and Asia. She will be missed.”

Although Petal had no biological offspring, fellow herd members Kallie and Bette -- who were half her age -- will need to adjust to life without their surrogate mother.

“We don’t know exactly what Kallie and Bette are feeling at this point,” said Dr. Andrew Baker, vice president for Animal Programs at Philadelphia Zoo. “It is definitely a change. We decided that it was important to give them the opportunity to say good-bye and be with her after she died.”

So far Kallie and Bette seem calm, according to Baker. Zoo staff will be monitoring them closely to ensure they are handling the transition as well as can be expected.

At 9 feet tall and 12 feet long, Petal weighed almost 9,500 pounds. Due to the elephants’ massive volume, it was planned for them to be moved from the quarter-acre-facility at the Philadelphia Zoo to the 724-acre International Conservation Center in Fairhope at the end of the summer season.

“We had been working towards building a new elephant habitat at the south end of the zoo for a number of years,” Baker said. “Two years ago we reached the conclusion that we were not going to find the funding in a reasonable timeframe. That’s what made us decide to move the elephants to areas that had current resources to put towards their care.”

Although some local animal rights activists are pointing to the elephants’ comparatively small current environment as a contributing factor in Petal’s death, Olson maintains that the size of the Elephant’s habitat at the zoo is not a concern.

“Space is not the issue. It is the whole management and care program for the elephants,” Olsen said. “You could give any animal unlimited space, but they are only going to use the space that they need to find food, water and have mates.”

Petal’s cause of death is currently unknown, but a forth coming necropsy will be performed.

“It is too early to know exactly what happened,” Dr. Baker said. “Petal had been in excellent health through her years at the Zoo, showing no recent signs of illness or decline. We will know much more in the days ahead.”

There are 155 African elephants in AZA accredited Zoological Institutions throughout the U.S. and Canada -- and of them one now moves up to take Petal’s place as the oldest.

“Now that we’ve lost Petal, I believe the new oldest African elephant is a female named Hydari at the Hogle Zoo in Utah. She is 48.” Olsen said.

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