Three of Dickerson Park Zoo’s elephants will celebrate milestone birthdays during Zoobilee on Saturday, May 30. Ol’ C.C., the zoo’s oldest elephant, is estimated to be 60 years old this year. The herd matriarch, Pinky, turns 45; and Patience will be 35 years old. Dickerson Park Zoo’s elephant herd comprises four adult cows (female) and one adult bull (male).
C.C. was wild-born in the Assam region of India in approximately 1949 and
came to Dickerson Park Zoo from the Dusit Zoological Park in Bangkok,
Thailand, in May 1954. Although she has never given birth to a calf of
her own, she has many years of experience as an “auntie” to calves both
here and at other zoos. She spent many years in the role of herd
matriarch but recently “retired” from that position.
Pinky was wild-born in approximately 1964. She came to Dickerson Park Zoo on November 25, 1981, from the Abilene Zoological Gardens in Abilene, Texas. Pinky fulfills the role of herd matriarch. She gave birth to a stillborn calf in 1985, Kate in 1991 and
Asha in 1995. Asha lives with her half-sister Chandra at the Oklahoma City Zoo
(currently on breeding loan to Tulsa Zoo).
Patience was born in Thailand in 1974. She arrived at Dickerson Park Zoo
from Brookfield Zoo in Chicago in October 1990. Patience gave birth to Kala in
1998 and Haji in 2000.
It is with heavy hearts this morning that we write. Our elephant calf Nisha died from the elephant herpesvirus in the early hours of Dec. 1. Her zookeepers and the adult female elephants were with her in the elephant barn throughout the night.
Dickerson Park Zoo celebrated the birth of Nisha in July 2006. It is with heavy hearts we announce today that late yesterday afternoon, Nisha began showing symptoms of a typically fatal elephant herpesvirus.
