Animals in this Exhibit
Elephant Trails is more than an exhibit; it is also an extensive conservation program built on decades of science. The Smithsonian’s National Zoo’s rich history of caring for and studying Asian elephants spans more than a century.
Scientists at the Zoo and Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute are working to create a comprehensive view of Asian elephant biology, behavior, reproduction, genetics, migration, elephant endotheliotropic virus (EEHV) and the challenges surrounding human-elephant conflict. Elephant Trails — where visitors can experience the sights, sounds and smells of the multi-generational herd — is the cornerstone of the campaign to save this endangered species from extinction. Online visitors can catch a glimpse of the Smithsonian's National Zoo's elephants on the Elephant Cam.
While six elephants (five females and one male) currently live on Elephant Trails, the exhibit is large enough to house between eight and 10 adult elephants and their young. Although the elephants don't need to travel at the Zoo, Elephant Trails give them ample space to move around. Within the Elephant Community Center and the surrounding outdoor yards, the elephants have their choice of four pools for bathing, swimming and playing in the warmer months.
Unique to the Zoo, the Elephant Trek provides outdoor exercise experiences for the Zoo’s elephants. Visible from the Homer and Martha Gudelski Elephant Outpost, the quarter-mile path winds its way through the woods between Elephant Trails and the Bird House, simulating the elevated terrain of their natural habitats.
Elephants are very intelligent, so the Smithsonian’s National Zoo provides them with enrichment activities to ensure they stay sharp. Often, keepers will entice the elephants to investigate objects by hiding some of their favorite foods inside. Specially designed nooks and puzzle feeders challenge the elephants to think and problem solve to retrieve the treats inside.
Caring for Elephants
The pachyderms are provided with everything they need to survive and thrive, including first-class medical care, dedicated nutrition plans, training sessions, exercise and enrichment. The elephant team interacts with the animals through a protective barrier, a standard practice for zoos that are accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
The bulk of the elephant space is covered in natural substrates (grass, dirt and sand outdoors, sand stalls inside), although a number of indoor enclosures have a rubber coating on the floor. Rubber floors provide good cushioning and a cleanable surface during the elephants' baths. There are also a few areas that have broom-finished concrete or pavement. The combination of hard and soft surfaces allows the Zoo’s elephants to choose areas most comfortable to them.
The Elephant Barn which is next to the Elephant Community Center, contains five ‘suite’ enclosures that can accommodate individual and multiple elephants. Browse (vegetation, such as shoots and leaves, that is suitable for animals to eat) is stored in a climate-controlled space where misters keep it fresh until it is given to the animals. An on-site kitchen enables keepers to store fruits, vegetables and leaf-eater biscuits among other foods. The Barn is not open to visitors.
Elephants are very intelligent, so the Smithsonian’s National Zoo provides them with enrichment activities to ensure they stay sharp. The enrichment program provides physically and mentally stimulating toys, activities and environments for the Zoo's animals. An exhibit’s design is carefully and deliberately planned to ensure the comfort, safety and health of the animals. Each enrichment is tailored to give an animal the opportunity to use its natural behaviors in novel and exciting ways.
At the Zoo, the elephants receive daily, weekly, monthly and even annual enrichment to ensure that no two days are ever the same. Keepers may add novel objects — like musical instruments, tractor tires, bungee chords, scratch trees or boomer balls — to encourage the elephants to play with and manipulate objects. Near the top of the hill, elephants are attracted to a 10-foot-tall tree to which keepers have added toys, browse and food-filled paper bags.
Often, keepers will entice the elephants to investigate these objects by hiding some of their favorite foods within. Specially designed nooks and puzzle feeders challenge the elephants to think and problem solve to retrieve the treats inside. Elephants are able to learn quickly, so keepers continually alter and enhance enrichment objects to keep the experience fresh, fun, and interesting for the animals. Hanging above an elephant’s head, bamboo on the zipline encourages natural foraging behavior. In addition to bamboo, elephants eat about 100 pounds of food each day including seasonal fruits and vegetables, hay and grain supplements.
Enrichment has been incorporated into the design of the enclosure as well. Tall shade structures provide protection from the sun in warmer months, heat in the cooler months, and a source for hanging bungees for the elephants to push and pull. Trees and foliage provide visual interest as well as shade, foraging opportunities and privacy, giving the elephants many options in how they use the habitats. Looking for a warm spot for a nap, elephants follow the afternoon sun as it peeks through the branches of large shade trees on the ridge. The shade changes location throughout the day, encouraging the elephants to move about the habitats to regulate their own body temperature.
Within the Elephant Community Center and in the surrounding outdoor yards, the elephants have their choice of four pools for bathing, swimming and playing in the warmer months. The Elephant Trek provides outdoor exercise experiences for the Zoo’s elephants. The quarter-mile path winds its way through the woods between Elephant Trails and the Bird House, simulating the type of elevated terrain of their natural habitats.
Social interaction is a critical component of caring for elephants. At the Zoo, the elephants socialize with each other and with their keepers. Every day, each elephant has the opportunity to train with a keeper. In these sessions, keepers cue the elephants to present their trunks, feet, ears, shoulders and rear ends to the keepers for a close inspection.
Elephants always have a choice to participate or not, but most of them seem to enjoy the challenge of the routine. Most importantly, these sessions allow keepers to closely monitor the health of the animals and look for any injuries. The Zoo uses positive reinforcement training; every time the elephants do a behavior asked of them, they're rewarded with fruit or leaf-eater biscuits — two of their favorite treats.
The Zoo’s elephants are participating in a multi-year behavior study looking at how they spend their day. This study helps the animal care team assess any changes that should be made to the enrichment program.