ST. LOUIS – The Saint Louis Zoo has announced the birth of a male Aian elephant calf that was born on Saturday, November 23rd, 2024, at 4:32 a.m. The calf was named Jet by their Elephant Care team.
The Zoo’s 17-year-old Asian elephant gave birth to the baby boy.
The team chose Jet because Jet is a gemstone and is in line with the Zoo’s elephant family history of gemstone names. Jet’s great grandparents are Onyx and Pearl. His mother is Jade.
“We are thrilled to welcome this calf, which starts the fourth generation of our Asian elephant family at the Zoo,” said Thim Their, Curator of Mammals/Ungulates and River’s Edge, and Director, Saint Louis Zoo WildCare Institute Center for Asian Elephant Conservation. “Jade and baby are doing well and bonding.”
The Zoo says that this is the first Asian elephant birth from artificial insemination at the Saint Louis Zoo. Jet’s father, Jake, currently lives at Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance in Denver, CO. Jake was born at African Lion Safari in Ontario, Canada.
The Saint Louis Zoo explained that using the science of artificial insemination allowed Jade to contribute to the genetic diversity of the population while being able to remain with her family group.
Jade was born at the Saint Louis Zoo in 2007, and her parents are Rani and Raja. She and her calf are part of an eight-member, four-generation elephant family at the Zoo’s River’s Edge. The other elephants in the family are Ellie, Maliha, Pearl, Priya, Sri, and Raja.