African Forest Elephant Pregnancy at Japanese Zoo

 

Hiroshima City Asa Zoological Park has confirmed Japan's first pregnancy of an African forest elephant, a species threatened with extinction. These elephants are classified as critically endangered on the Red List of Threatened Species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. 

The elephant came to the zoo in Hiroshima in 2001 from Burkina Faso and is estimated to be about 25 years old. She was partnered with a male elephant from another zoo in 2022. An elephant's gestation period is usually 20 to 22 months and she is expected to give birth sometime between August and October next year. The pregnancy was confirmed via ultrasonic echography on August 14th. 

People often complain about animals being kept in zoos and I can understand that, but in cases of animals on the endangered list, this is an important contribution to saving the species.