Taronga Zoo’s final two Asian elephants, Pak Boon and Tang Mo, have begun their journey from Sydney to Monarto Safari Park in South Australia.
This marks the first time in a century that Sydney will be without elephants.
The elephants departed Sydney on Tuesday, accompanied by their keepers, for the 1,300-kilometre trip to their new home.
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The relocation is part of a broader initiative to establish a new social herd at Monarto Safari Park.
Pak Boon and Tang Mo will join female elephants Burma from Auckland Zoo, Permai and male elephant Putra Mas from Perth Zoo.
The moving preparation involved over a year of training, including crate training and fitting the elephants with ankle braces to ensure their safety during transport.
The elephants were carefully loaded into custom-designed containers, which were then lifted by crane onto trucks for the journey.
Monarto Safari Park elephant keeper Tess Stevens expressed enthusiasm about the new arrivals.
“We’re really excited to meet the girls and get to know their personalities,” Stevens said.
The two Sydney elephants will be met in Adelaide by elephants from Perth and Auckland, specially relocated to form a new herd.
“These guys are going to form another social herd, and so they’re going to get that extra social behaviour that they need.”
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