Less than two weeks ago, twin elephants were born in the Samburu National Reserve in northern Kenya. a “very rare” fact among these mammals, The environmental organization Save the Elephants informed EFE today.
“It is very strange for twin elephants to be born in any elephant populationIf they can survive, “Twins represent only 1%.”Save the Elephants’ director of field operations, David Daballen, told EFE by telephone.
Alto, the name of the mother of the two new calves, was born around 1997 and the NGO, based in Nairobi, had been following in her footsteps for some time.
“When we see a group we have to identify it and we keep a very good record of everyone. So to see that those babies were the same age, they were always together and only one elephant fed them, it was a big indication that they were both their babies.” Daballen assured.
In 2022, another elephant also gave birth to a pair of twins in Samburu, a male and a female, but the great drought that Kenya was suffering caused the death of the female.Elephants, the director indicated, only feed their own young and, therefore, it was a key element in confirming that a new pair of twins had just been born in Samburu.
In 2022, another elephant also gave birth to a pair of twins in Samburu, a male and a female, but the great drought that Kenya was suffering caused the death of the female.
Twin elephant births are a real exception. “We were in the middle of a severe drought and normally it is very rare for twins to survive,” Daballen said, adding that the elephants’ nursing needs are very high.
“They need a lot of milk and in a drought it is very difficult for them to survive. “The fact that one survived during such a terrible drought shows that the mother was fine, even though we lost the female,” he explained.
The new twins were a big surprise for Save the Elephants, who hope to see how they evolve in such a unique landscape. for their needs are very extreme and it is necessary for the mother to have plenty of milk to give to her babies..
An elephant’s gestation lasts 22 months, the longest among all mammals, and a calf weighs about one hundred kilos.
The Samburu National Reserve has around 7,600 elephants, making up between 30,000 and 40,000 elephants living in Kenya, according to Daballen.
Source: EFE
Source: Clarin
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