Elephant Anjalee has arrived!

Auckland Zoo is delighted that eight-year-old Asian elephant Anjalee has arrived safely in Auckland to join the Zoo’s 32-year-old female elephant Burma.
Anjalee, who has just successfully completed three months quarantine on Niue, is the first of two elephants that will be coming to Auckland Zoo from Sri Lanka’s Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage.

Thanks to the New Zealand Defence Force, Anjalee was once again flown on a C-130 Hercules for this final leg of her journey to her new home at Auckland Zoo.

“It’s fantastic to finally have Anjalee here in New Zealand,” says Auckland Zoo director, Jonathan Wilcken.“Under our elephant team’s expert care and management Anjalee has absolutely thrived while in quarantine on Niue, growing in both confidence and size! That’s set to continue here at Auckland Zoo. With our incredible team and a world-leading elephant programme, we can give Anjalee a wonderful life, provide Burma with a great companion, and continue to support vital elephant conservation efforts in the wild.”

Auckland Zoo has worked in partnership with Sri Lanka’s Department of National Zoological Gardens, who manage Pinnawala’s currently overcrowded elephant orphanage, to bring Anjalee to Auckland.

Sir Don McKinnon, Chairman of Regional Facilities Auckland (which manages Auckland Zoo on behalf of Auckland Council), says getting Anjalee to New Zealand has been an outstanding international effort.

“This significant event for the Zoo has been made possible with the generous assistance from the government of Sri Lanka and the close cooperation of the government of Niue. Our own government and its agencies, including MFAT and the New Zealand Defence Force, have also been of tremendous help.”

Auckland Zoo contributes over $1 million a year to help protect and conserve wildlife in the wild – including Asian elephants in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Sumatra.
“We’re very grateful and proud to say that a large percentage of this conservation funding comes directly from each and every one of our visitors as part of their admission,” says Zoo director, Jonathan Wilcken.

Visitors to Auckland Zoo are likely to see Anjalee once she has settled into her new surroundings. It is difficult to give a time-frame on when Anjalee will be outside. Public are encouraged to keep an eye on the Zoo’s website and social media for regular updates.

‘It’s all about elephants’ (27 June - 19 July)
In celebration of Anjalee’s arrival, Auckland Zoo is bringing its visitors ‘It’s all about elephants’ – a four-week programme of special events and activities for all ages. These include a photographic exhibition thanks to support from the New Zealand Herald and Canon, an ‘It’s all about elephants’ interactive holiday programme, and ASB Family Fun weekends (27-28 June and 4-5 July). In addition, everyone who visits Auckland Zoo up until 19 July has the chance to win a trip for 4 to Niue thanks to Niue Island. Full details atwww.aucklandzoo.co.nz

Acknowledgements
Auckland Zoo wishes to sincerely thank Sri Lanka and the Department of National Zoological Gardens, Sri Lanka High Commission, Government of Niue, Auckland Airport, the Ministry for Primary Industries, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand High Commission Delhi, New Zealand High Commission Niue, the respective Honorary Consuls of Sri Lanka and New Zealand, Department of Conservation, Auckland Council and Regional Facilities Auckland.
A special thank you also goes to the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) for flying Anjalee to Niue and to Auckland, as part of their Pacific training and engagement.

Notes for the editor

• Anjalee is the first of two elephants coming to Auckland Zoo from Sri Lanka’s Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage
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• A second elephant will be identified for transfer within a couple of years
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• Anjalee was flown from Niue to Auckland on a NZDF C-130 Hercules
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• The C-130 Hercules is the only aircraft in New Zealand capable of conducting this task due to the size of Anjalee and her container and the unique ability of the C-130 to unload cargo without significant ground support
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• Tasks of this type present unique considerations that have to be overcome which provide valuable training for NZDF personnel and meet part of their commitment to ongoing training flights and engagement in the Pacific region
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• Auckland Zoo only accepts elephants that have no prospect for release to the wild
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• Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is overcrowded, having been built to house 30 elephants but currently housing over 75
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• When Sri Lanka heard that Burma was without companions, due to the loss of elephant Kashin in 2009, their representative approached Auckland Zoo to see how they could help.
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• Public are likely to see Anjalee once she has settled in to her new surroundings. It is difficult to give a time-frame on this, but keep an eye on Auckland Zoo’s website and social media for regular updates
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• This project was approved back in 2011 by Auckland Council’s Strategy & Finance Committee. The $3.2m project allocation is a forward allocation of Auckland Zoo’s funding and comes at no additional cost to ratepayers.
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• Asian elephants are endangered; their wild habitat is diminishing and wild elephant populations are increasingly coming into conflict with people with disastrous results
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ENDS

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