“The journey lasted a grueling five days, covering close to 4,000 kilometers from Mendoza until the sanctuary in Chapada dos Guimarães in Mato Grosso,” states Daniel Moura, Director and Biologist at Santuário de Elefantes Brasil. “Over 20 people were involved in the motorcade, including police escorts from the border in Foz do Iguacu all the way to the sanctuary.”
Having spent the majority of her life in isolation within a zoo, Kenya will now join six other Asian elephants, including the latest arrival Pupy, who came in April.
“Now, Kenya just needs to acclimate to her new surroundings,” says Moura. “I expect it will happen swiftly, just like Pupy’s adjustment. Soon, they’ll be exploring together this abundant environment, spanning over 50,000 square meters of forests, where they can relish in nature—it’s a truly enriched ecosystem that they truly deserve.”
The Elephant Sanctuary in Brazil, Latin America’s first refuge of its kind, currently houses seven elephants, all of which were rescued from years of life in circuses or zoos.
