Zoo’s lone elephant will leave

http://omaha.com/article/20101115/NEWS01/711169941/1009#zoo-s-lone-elephant-will-leave

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By Carol Bicak
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER


This spring, the Henry Doorly Zoo will be without an elephant exhibit for the first time in more than 40 years.

The zoo is in the process of finding a new home for Shenga, the 28-year-old African elephant who lives on Pachyderm Hill. The move was precipitated by the death of 47-year-old Maliaka on Oct. 16, which left Shenga alone.

The elephant exhibit, which was created on the baseball field of the old Riverview Park in 1968, is out of date, said Dennis Pate, zoo director and CEO. And elephants need to be in a social setting with other elephants.

Shenga came to the zoo in 2001, to be company for Maliaka after the death of 50-year-old Penny.

The zoo’s master plan calls for a new elephant exhibit in the proposed African Grasslands exhibit. It will have eight times the outdoor exhibit space of the current exhibit, and will be built on grass and sand rather than concrete. The indoor winter space will be 18 times larger, and its floor will be covered with deep sand.

But most importantly, there will be a herd of elephants, and they will stay together day and night all year long.

FULL story at link.