Public gets first glimpse of new elephants; 'It’s a goosebumps day,' zoo CEO says (link & VID added) [View all]

[Omaha Steve]

If they had stayed in their homeland, they would have been culled because of the sever drought. The zoos provided millions for verified protection of rhinos because of this!

Edit: The 3.3 acre outside area is still under construction. It is to open Memorial Day weekend.

And this link too: http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/Elephants-set-for-debut-at-the-zoo-374745981.html

OS


REBECCA S. GRATZ/THE WORLD-HERALD

The elephants were released from stalls in the back of the barn to the main exhibit area that has sand, trees, hay piles and drops.

More photos. VIDEO just added: https://twitter.com/megan_kristin/status/717802793843560448

http://www.omaha.com/living/zoo/public-gets-first-glimpse-of-new-elephants-it-s-a/article_96445a32-fa84-11e5-91d7-0b9f6efadc67.html


POSTED: WEDNESDAY, APRIL 6, 2016 12:00 AM | UPDATED: 2:40 PM, WED APR 6, 2016.
By Chris Peters / World-Herald staff writer

Omaha’s elephants have taken their first lumbering steps into public view.

But it was not exactly as planned. Zoo officials decided it was too cold for the elephants to be outside but, faced with a long line of visitors, decided to let people inside the elephant barn to see them.

“It’s a goosebumps day for me,” zoo CEO Dennis Pate said. He said it’s his second happiest day, following the day the elephants’ plane touched down safely.

More than 100 people were in line at 11 a.m. to see the elephants. Seven-year-old Charlotte Vander Zwaag and her mom, Roberta, were the first inside. They had waited an hour in the cold to see the elephants.

FULL story and more photos at link.


REBECCA S. GRATZ/THE WORLD-HERALD

The elephants were released from stalls in the back of the barn to the main exhibit area that has sand, trees, hay piles and drops. The first one out was a female about 10-years-old. More photos.