“Strong as a Rock,” Disney’s Baby Elephant Receives Swahili Name

With a birth weight of 311 pounds, the most recent elephant born at Disney’s Animal Kingdom has been fittingly named Jabali, or “strong as a rock” in Swahili. According to zoological managers, the masculine name is well-suited for a baby elephant that could grow to an adult weight of more than 10,000 pounds.

Jabali was welcomed into the African elephant group last week by his 25-year-old mother Vasha, 10 herd members and a team of animal care professionals assisting with the birth. He’s also received a lot of attention from his older sister Kianga, who has been showering him with affection.

The next critical milestone is for the calf to continue the bonding process with his mother and sister, who are both teaching him important lessons as he gradually acclimates to the rest of the savannah herd over the next several weeks.

Jabali’s birth raises Disney’s elephant herd to twelve, making it one of the largest African elephant herds in North America.

Since early August, animal care teams have provided round-the-clock monitoring, regular ultrasounds and daily hormone monitoring of Vasha to more accurately predict the beginning of labor. In the past few years, Disney’s animal care teams have been able to narrow the birth window to within four days, which enables them to better prepare for the delivery.

Disney has been at the forefront of efforts to better understand and care for endangered elephants. Disney’s Animal Kingdom is part of a breeding program coordinated by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) that is focused on sustaining the elephant population in North America. AZA’s Elephant Species Survival Plan has called for a five-fold increase in African elephant reproduction efforts – using both natural and artificial breeding methods – in order to create a self-sustaining elephant population among North American zoos and wildlife centers.

Related articles

• New Baby Elephant Takes Center Stage at Disney’s Animal Kingdom (chipandco.com)
• North American Zoos Support Worldwide Elephant Conservation (prweb.com)

Let our friends at Destinations to Travel help you book your next Disney Vacation. They are the preferred Travel Agency of Chip and Company and Disney Addicts, and who we use ourselves.

Get started below for your FREE No Obligation Quote.

Book With our friends at Destinations to Travel

Name(Required)

First Last

Email(Required)

Phone(Required)

Destination(Required)

Walt Disney WorldDisneyland ResortDisney Cruise LineAulani, A Disney Resort and SpaAulani, A Disney Resort and SpaUniversal FloridaUniversal HollywoodRoyal Caribbean, Carnival, Norwegian or other Cruise LineI don't know yet

Departure Date(Required)

MM slash DD slash YYYY

Comments, Questions or Special Requests

Name

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Δ

For the BEST in Disney, Universal, Dollywood, and SeaWorld Theme Park News, Entertainment, Merchandise & More follow us on, Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube. Don't forget to check out the Chip and Company Radio Network too!