Happy Birthday, Maharani!

Close-up of Asian elephant Maharani's face.

This update was written by elephant keeper Kayleigh Sullivan.

Female Asian elephant Maharani is turning 29 years old Sunday, July 14, and we are celebrating with her favorite thing—food! To complement her name, which means “princess” in Hindi, our Department of Nutrition Sciences created a giant princess-themed cake made of frozen, diluted fruit juice. Since July is one of the hottest months of the year, it will be a welcome and refreshing treat. Stop by the Elephant Outpost and the Elephant Trek at 11 a.m. Sunday to watch Rani enjoy her cake during our keeper talk.

Asian elephants Spike (left) and Maharani (right) eat hay.
A female blue-winged teal stands on a white background.
Female blue-winged and green-winged teals look very similar. To tell them apart, look for the extra white around the blue-winged teals’ bills. 
A male green-winged teal. The photo is a close-up and the duck's head takes up most of the image.
Male green-winged teals are easily distinguishable from blue-winged teals by the wide, dark green stripe on their heads.
A male bufflehead swims in an indoor pool. The water is very clear and there is some greenery poking out from the upper left corner and lower right corner of the photo.
Prairie Pothole aviary is home to one male bufflehead.
Elephant Maharani sprays herself with water from her trunk.
A female bufflehead stands on a white backdrop, facing slightly toward the left.
Female buffleheads are the smallest ducks in the Bird House’s Prairie Pothole aviary.
A male northern shoveler stands on a white backdrop.
Both male and female northern pintails have central tail feathers that appear to end in a point. Pictured here is a male.
A female Northern shoveler stands on a white backdrop.
Both male and female northern pintails have central tail feathers that appear to end in a point. Pictured here is a female.