By 
The Saint Louis Zoo’s bull Asian elephant, Raja (pronounced RAH-zhä), will celebrate his “golden birthday” later this month, when he turns 27 on Dec. 27.
A golden birthday (also known as “grand birthday” or “lucky birthday”) occurs once in a lifetime when one turns the age of their birth day.
Raja will receive special presents to stomp open at his annual birthday party at 11 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 27, at River’s Edge in the zoo, weather permitting. Visitors are invited to sing “Happy Birthday” and cheer for him. After the celebration, visitors can sign a super-sized birthday card and learn more about the elephants and elephant conservation through keeper chats, activities and biofacts until 1 p.m. at the Lakeside Cafe. Birthday cupcakes and hot chocolate will be available for purchase.
Born on Dec. 27, 1992, Raja was the first Asian elephant born at the zoo. He is the father of three female calves at the zoo — Maliha, 13, Jade, 12, and Priya, 6 — and another calf due in summer 2020, to mother, Rani.
“We all look forward to celebrating Raja’s golden birthday with the entire St. Louis community this year,” said Katie Pilgram-Kloppe, acting curator of River’s Edge at the Saint Louis Zoo. “It’s a privilege to care for these amazing animals, and to see how Raja inspires our guests to care about elephants in the wild.”
For the party, zookeepers and volunteers have constructed birthday presents filled with some of the elephants’ favorite things, including cereal, peanuts, bananas and popcorn. Large trees will be provided for the elephants to push over and encourage natural browsing. Other elephants from the family may also be celebrating with treats of their own in River’s Edge.
From 10:30 to 11 a.m. (weather permitting), visitors can meet a keeper and watch animal training demonstrations at the elephant habitats. The zoo’s three-generation Asian elephant family is thriving under the excellent care provided by a highly trained professional animal-care team.
Comments