Page 11 - Ratel 2023 Summer

Ratel volume 50, issue number 2

An Inside Look at Elephant Eden.

By Connor Dennis.

Figure 1. African elephant Shaka enjoying unrestricted access to willow at Noah’s Ark.

Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm is a 100-acre zoo and working farm located carefully designed with variable environmental features to maxim-
in Wraxall, North Somerset, six miles West of Bristol. Opening as ise species-specific behaviours, to positively challenge the elephants
a small animal attraction in 1999, Noah’s Ark has developed enor- and to help with their management.
mously in the past 24 years, into a multi award-winning charity. It
has since introduced a variety of vulnerable species, including large Indoor Habitat
mammals like primates and bears, as well as a wide variety of bird
and reptile species who have all since become important contribut- The heated indoor portion of the habitat has been carefully de-
ing members of their respective EEPs. signed to allow the elephants to move freely as a group - although
it can also be split into four separate pens with ample space if
Amongst the species welcomed to Noah’s Ark in the past decade is necessary. Each habitable area is characterised by deep sand floor-
the African savannah or bush elephant (Loxodonta africana). This ing to promote environmental complexity, hygiene and digging
taxon is currently classified as endangered since its population opportunities, with large mounds for recumbent sleep. The locally-
numbers continue to decline and fragment (IUCN Red List, 2022) sourced sand is regularly rotavated and deluged to prevent it from
due to the huge pressures that it faces. This includes poaching, becoming dry and dusty, as well as promoting good foot and joint
habitat loss, human-elephant conflict and disease. Elephants are health in the elephants. It allows them to wear their foot pads and
charismatic animals and housing them in modern collections allows nails down naturally and evenly, helping them to bear their weight
us to conserve the species whilst educating the public and advanc- better than is permitted by hard substrates. To provide a novel and
ing the scientific knowledge of elephant biology, physiology, and unpredictable environment keepers at Noah’s Ark will regularly
behaviour. modify the enclosure with new sand mounds, raised logs, variable
feeding opportunities and a continuously-developing enrichment
Elephant Eden is a two-million pound investment at Noah’s Ark programme. Elephant Eden is fitted with 24-hour CCTV to moni-
which opened in late 2013, following several years of planning, tor and record daytime activity of the elephants outdoors, whilst
consulting and designing. Elephant Eden was designed to conserve also covering the entire indoor barn; this allows keepers to record
the species whilst supporting the work of the EEP and it is current- and store the nocturnal activity and behaviour of the elephants, as
ly the largest elephant facility in Northern Europe. The encourage- well as their individual sleep patterns and duration each night.
ment of natural behaviours and the scope for the elephants to
express choice across a complex and variable 20-acre habitat is at There are three dedicated training areas with training walls, each
the heart of Elephant Eden. Each aspect of the enclosure was with ports that allow keepers to access different parts of the

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