Gung Move
Taronga's bull elephant 'Gung' has quickly settled into his new quarters located next to Taronga's historic elephant temple. Gung moved into his new home in early April, with the transfer being uneventful and stress-free for the young, boisterous bull.
Gung's new home is a custom-designed complex featuring a barn with rubberised floors, CCTV, a sand pit, heaters and showers, surrounded by yards with sleeping mounds, a mud wallow and pools, complete with water jets.
Weeks before the move from the ANZ Wild Asia exhibit to his new complex, Gung's keepers prepared him for the short trip, by walking him in and out of a specially - designed crate. On the day of the move the crate was then lifted onto the back of a low loader and driven the short distance to the new breeding facility.
Gung's first stop in his new home was to explore the barn which features rubberised floors, a sand pit, heaters and hot and cold showers. After investigating most of his new barn he spent the rest of his day inspecting the outdoor area where he quickly discovered his mud wallow.
Gung kept himself busy throughout his first night redecorating much of his surroundings. His scratching posts were plastered with mud and the wall of the heritage listed temple was also freshly coated.
The female elephants have not shown any signs of missing Gung since his move. This is no surprise given that in the months preceding the move, Gung constantly harassed the cows and challenged the matriarch Porntip, sparring energetically with her and Pak Boon.
This sparring and jousting which accompanies mating behaviour was becoming more intense and forceful as females who were not reproductively cycling tried to drive him away. With three pregnant females & Australia's first calf due in the middle of this year this type of attention from a young male was being resented by our female group.
Such behaviour in the wild is natural, with female dominated herds driving out young male elephants as they reach sexual maturity. These young bulls become solitary animals or sometimes live in bachelor groups, only interacting with the females when they are cycling and receptive to mating.
'Gung' receives daily care including wash-downs, challenges, games, enrichment activities and exercise. Gung will not be lonely or on his own. As well as regular daily contact with the keepers who he is bonded to, Gung will also have regular visits from the female elephants who will come down to visit and spend time with him.
Gung is an important part of the program as he is the only breeding bull in Australia at this time. Gung's success in natural mating, along with Taronga and Melbourne Zoos' success in getting cows pregnant by Artificial Insemination under the advice of international elephant reproductive breeding specialists, is good news for the regionally sustainable herd.
With wild elephant numbers across Asia as low as 34,000, having viable breeding programs in Australasian Zoos contributes to insurance against sudden wild population slumps and motivation of the community to support elephants in their range states.
