Not one, but two new babies have been welcomed at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, New York. According to a news release from the zoo, the Asian elephant twins were born on October 24 to their parents Mali and Doc. The zoo officials considered the birth of twins to be a success, according to the newspaper. Twins only occasionally survive after birth in the less than 1% of elephant births that are twins.
The first child, weighing 220 pounds, was born at roughly two in the morning, according to the release. Then, 10 hours later, Mali surprised the caretakers by giving birth to a second male calf. Even though the second infant weighed 237 pounds, she was “noticeably weaker than the first.”
What Animal Care Team Did After The Birth?
Consequently, the “zoo’s animal care team and veterinary staff sprang into action and were able to significantly improve the calf’s condition,” according to the release. The birth of twins had not been anticipated by the experts “due to the sheer improbability as well as the complexity of elephant ultrasounds,” according to the release.
But they had a specialized milk substitute on standby to round out the diet of the second calf, so they were still ready. According to the zoo, the birth of the twin elephants was a “historic moment” for the establishment because there has never before been a case of elephant twins in the United States.
Description Of Asian Elephant
The Asian elephant has the highest body point on the head and is typically smaller than the African bush elephant. The back may be level or convex. The dorsal margins of the small, laterally folded ears are folded. It contains 34 caudal vertebrae and up to 20 pairs of ribs. Each forefoot has five nail-like structures, while each rear foot has four. Unlike the flat front of African elephants, the forehead features two hemispherical bulges.
In contrast to African elephants, which have two finger-like tips on their lengthy trunks, it only has one. Therefore, the Asian species relies less on gripping with the tip and more on wrapping around a food item and squeezing it into its mouth. Asian elephants are more capable of difficult activities and have better muscle coordination.
Habitat Of Asian Elephant
Along with cultivated and secondary forests, scrublands, moist deciduous forests, dry deciduous forests, and semi-evergreen forests, Asian elephants live in grasslands, tropical evergreen forests, semi-evergreen forests, dry deciduous forests, and dry thorn forests. Elephants can be found in this variety of habitats from sea level to more than 3,000 m (9,800 ft). At a few locations, they regularly ascend above 3,000 m (9,800 ft) throughout the summer in the eastern Himalayas in northeast India.