Mundi the Elephant Rescued by Sanctuary After 35 Years in Captivity

THINK

Jun 1

The 41-year-old elephant was cruelly trained to perform in circus shows before being kept in isolation for over three decades. Now, she has a second chance at happiness at a new sanctuary home in Georgia.

Mundi, the rescued African Savannah elephant, in her new home and meeting another resident. Credit: World Animal Protection

An elephant who was kept in isolation for over three decades at a controversial zoo in Puerto Rico has successfully been relocated to an elephant sanctuary in Georgia.

Named Mundi, the 41-year-old African elephant had been kept at the Mayaguez Zoo in Puerto Rico since 1988. She lived in isolation the entire time, in an area of about 15,000 square feet (around 1/4 acre).

The zoo struggled financially and has been closed to the public for several years after losing its USDA license for failing to employ a veterinarian and providing substandard care for its animals, many of whom are reported to have died.

Then in February 2023, the zoo was ordered by the US Department of Justice to close and relocate all of its remaining animals to reputable sanctuaries.

Now, Mundi has arrived at the Elephant Refuge North America (ERNA) to start a new life where she can live in peace in a near-natural sanctuary habitat.

Mundi’s custom transport crate. Credit: Elephant Refuge North America (ERNA)

Located in Attapulgus, Georgia, ERNA has 850 acres of lush pastures, hills, forests and a spring-fed lake, and is currently already home to two other rescue elephants, Bo and Tarra.

“Seeing Mundi arrive safely is honestly a beautiful sight” said Dr. Jan Schmidt-Burbach, Head of Wildlife Research and Animal welfare at World Animal Protection, who helped fund Mundi’s relocation and care. “For almost 35 years, Mundi has been on display at the zoo. She lived alone in a small enclosure with access only to a dark indoor shelter. That is no life for any wild animal. I hope Mundi gets to live out her remaining years with the freedom and care she deserves.”

Originally born in the wild in Zimbabwe in 1982, a young Mundi was transported to Florida and then was forced to perform in a circus before being moved to Mayaguez Zoo where she has spent the majority of her life so far.

Her rescue from the zoo was an ambitious effort between local authorities and several animal welfare groups including Elephant Aid International (EAI), World Animal Animal Protection, and The Wild Animal Sanctuary (TWAS). A dedicated 747 airplane delivered Mundi, who weighs 8,000 pounds and needed to be transported in her own custom transport crate.

From Zoos to Sanctuaries: How We View Elephants Is Changing

Attitudes towards keeping elephants in captivity have been changing in recent years. Several prominent zoos around the world have introduced the phasing out of keeping elephants, citing that the animals should instead be housed in more natural settings in reputable sanctuaries.

This shift in attitudes has been largely driven by an increasing understanding of how elephants often struggle to thrive when kept in unnatural conditions such as small enclosures within zoos. Earlier this year, a list of the “10 Worst Zoos for Elephants in North America” was released by In Defense of Animals (IDA), and focused on the plight of elephants in zoos. IDA says that a lack of space, unsuitably cold climates, and unnatural conditions, condemn Earth’s largest land mammals to lifetimes of deprivation, disease, and early death.

Campaigners protesting for New York’s Happy the elephant to be released to a sanctuary. Happy currently lives by herself in a small enclosure at the Bronx Zoo, where she has been held since 1977 after being taken from the wild.

The list mirrors the findings of another recent report, Elephants in Zoos: A Legacy of Shame, by international wildlife charity Born Free, which also raises concerns around low birth rates and high infant mortality, stating that 40 percent of infant elephants in zoos die before the age of five.

The report notes that zoos also continue to drive demand for the capture of wild elephants, and the charity is now calling on zoos to phase out captive elephants from their exhibits. Will Travers, co-founder of Born Free, said "it will take time, we all acknowledge that. For animals still in zoos, we need to create large, spacious enclosures in a sanctuary environment. We need to stop attempting to breed them. We should bring no more elephants from the wild."

Why are zoos under increased scrutiny? Listen to our podcast episode “Captivity Sucks”, where we speak with Devan Schowe, Campaigns Associate for Born Free USA, about her extensive work reporting on the suffering of giraffes in US zoos, and why captivity in general is so harmful for animals.

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