Buenos Aires, Argentina – Pupy the elephant arrived at her new residence in a sanctuary in Mato Grosso, Brazil, Friday following a 2,700-kilometer (1,680-mile) overland journey from a zoo transformed into an ecological park in Argentina’s capital the place she had spent 30 years in situations criticized by activists.
The Buenos Aires mayor’s workplace stated in an announcement that the final elephant dwelling within the Argentine metropolis’s “Ecopark” arrived at her vacation spot in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest “in excellent well being.”
The 35-year-old African elephant was transported in a big iron crate with thick bars strapped to a truck, a mission for which she had been skilled for a number of months. The truck was flanked by vans full of caretakers and veterinarians.
Pupy (pronounced POOH’-pee in Spanish) didn’t require sedation through the five-day journey to Elephant Sanctuary Brazil, the primary refuge for elephants in Latin America positioned within the municipality of Chapadas Dos Guimarães in Mato Gross state, Argentine authorities stated.
Upon arriving on the sanctuary, her veterinary escorts opened the door for her, however Pupy was reluctant to go away the iron crate. They stated they fed her sugarcane and watermelon, her favourite meals, and gave her a shower to refresh her.
Pupy will stay in an out of doors shed whereas she begins to adapt to her new residence, with out dashing.
“All the things will occur at her personal tempo,” stated the Buenos Aires mayor’s workplace.
In 2016, Buenos Aires launched the transformation of its century-old, city zoo in Palermo neighborhood into an ecological park for the preservation of biodiversity and the conservation of native species.
As a part of this course of, greater than 1,000 animals — together with lions, tigers, bears and apes — have been relocated to different international locations the place they get pleasure from higher dwelling situations. An emblematic case was that of the orangutan Sandra, who now lives on the Nice Ape Middle in Wauchula, Florida, the place she has tailored and has buddies of her personal species.
Pupy, who arrived on the Palermo zoo in 1993, is the newest animal transferred from the Buenos Aires ecological park.
Already having fun with the Brazil Elephant Sanctuary are 5 Asian elephants — together with Mara, a former circus elephant that additionally ended up within the Argentine protect’s enclosure and 5 years in the past made the identical freeway journey to the refuge, the place she now trudges at the least 10 kilometers (6 miles) a day.
Pupy won’t be reunited with Mara in her new residence, “because of the pure variations between the 2 species,” officers defined. “The sanctuary is designed to maintain the teams separate, respecting their organic and behavioral wants.”
The Buenos Aires “Ecopark” will proceed to accommodate animals that, attributable to age or logistical impossibility, can’t be transferred to a different habitat.
