PORTLAND, Ore. (WTHR) — The Oregon Zoo has announced the pregnancy of one of its female elephants, and while zookeepers are over the moon, questions still remain — namely, who the father is.
The zoo announced Chendra's pregnancy July 10. She is expected to give birth in late 2020.
At 26 years old, the zoo said Chendra was nearing the age limit for conceiving. They say most elephants that don't conceive by their mid-20s rarely conceive at all.
Staff members at the zoo were surprised about the pregnancy because although Chendra has been around male elephants for more than a decade, caretakers had not seen her engage in breeding behavior.
Chendra's care staff said she conceived in January, but they aren't sure which of the two male elephants is the father.
"All we can say for sure is that the dad's name is Sam," said Bob Lee, who oversees the elephant area at the zoo. The zoo's two male elephants are named Samson and Samudra.
"Chendra has spent a lot of time with each of them over the past year. We won't know which Sam until the baby's born and we're able to do some genetic testing."
