....Elephant Museum....

The Lilah Callen Holden Elephant Museum, which opened December 1985, tells the story of elephants from their ancestors to the present day using exhibits on art, circuses, religion, war, history and pre-history.

The circular building, located next to the Elephant Exhibit, centers around an 8' tall & 13' long mastodon skeleton, which is on extended loan from the Smithsonian Institution. Exhibits include models of circus, work, and ceremonial elephants; ivory objects; circus tricycle; and history of Packy and our elephant herd.

The museum is named for Lilah Callen Holden, a long-time Oregon resident and elephant lover who died in 1983. Her family donated more than $100,000 for the museum as a memorial to her commitment to the zoo's Asian elephant program.


Elephants in Religion
Elephants are sacred creatures in two of Asia’s largest religions, Hinduism and Buddhism. In Hinduism, the god Ganesha takes the form of an elephant. Ganesha is the Hindu god who takes time to care about people’s everyday needs and worries. According to Hindu legend, he is also the scribe who wrote down the sacred text of the Mahabharata.



In Buddhist legend, the Buddha is supposed to have appeared to his mother during a dream before being born in the form of a white elephant carrying a lotus flower. For this reason, white elephants were revered as descendants of Buddha. Their rarity meant that when one was found, it was presented to the ruler of the region as a positive omen. The elephants were kept in the vicinity of the ruler’s palace and treated as a deity. But taking care of them often became a financial burden, so rulers would often give them as gifts to other rulers in a backhanded way of weakening their rivals. This is where the term ‘white elephant’ came from.


The Ivory Trade
Elephants have been hunted for their ivory for thousands of years. But in the 1970’s and 1980’s the killing became much worse due to political and economic instability in Africa. Over half of Africa’s elephants were killed in the 1980’s. The population decreased from 1.3 million in 1979 to only 600,000 in 1989. People could earn about half a year’s salary by killing one elephant for its ivory. Then in June 1989 the United States banned the import of ivory. Later that year in October the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) banned all international trade in ivory. Following the bans, world ivory prices fell 60-85%. Elephants are still threatened by ivory hunters today, but not as alarmingly as during the 1970’s and 1980’s.


Elephants in the Circus
Elephants had been used to entertain princes in India as long ago as 1,000 B.C. Circuses, however, developed from the tradition of traveling entertainers in Eastern Europe. The two did not come together until the 1870’s when PT Barnum purchased an enormous African Elephant named Jumbo from the London Zoo. Jumbo became probably the most famous elephant ever. The word jumbo originates with him. He traveled the United States as part of the circus and was the first and only elephant thousands of people saw. After the initial splash made by Jumbo, elephants continued to be a popular part of circus events because their intelligence allowed them to perform complicated tricks.

Work Elephants
For centuries, elephants have been used as work animals in Asia. Before the advent of modern machinery, elephants were the only creatures strong enough to perform many tasks. They were used in logging, mining, construction, and other heavy industries. Each elephant had its own handler, called a mahout. The mahout and the elephant would often meet each other when they were very young, and would grow up together, so that the elephant trusted its handler. Elephants were especially useful because of their remarkable intelligence. Most elephants can learn and remember over 100 commands. A prod called an ankus was used to direct the elephant.


War Elephants
Just as humans have used elephants for work, they have also been used for war. In ancient India, a princes strength was measured by how many elephants he possessed. Elephants were the equivalent of tanks in modern warfare, crushing opposing troops and bulldozing defenses. Usually work elephants would be conscripted with their handler, or mahout. On their backs, elephants would carry a large wooden box called a howdah from which archers would fire arrows into surrounding troops. The most famous wars involving elephants were the Punic Wars, fought between the Roman Empire and the kingdom of Carthage, in present day North Africa. In those wars, the famous military leader Hannibal fought the Romans using elephants, and even invaded the Italian peninsula from the north, marching elephants over the Alps during the second Punic War.


Elephants in the Wild
Elephants in the wild live in large family groups called herds, usually consisting of related females and their offspring. A dominant female called a matriarch, who is usually the oldest or most experienced member of the group, leads the herd. Males only join the herds to mate. Elephant herds roam over vast areas in order to find enough food to eat. It’s estimated that elephants eat as much as 400 pounds of food and drink 50 gallons of water each day. For this reason, elephants in the wild depend on having very large territories over which they can traverse. However, human settlement has fragmented elephant habitat creating problems for both elephants and people. Elephants are cut off from their feeding areas, while humans have their fields and crops trampled by elephants seeking out other locations for feeding.


Elephants in Captivity
In the last 25-30 years, more has been learned about elephants than in the last 5,000 years. This is largely because of the fact that elephants have been subject to intensive study at zoos across the world. The Oregon Zoo has been at the forefront of many discoveries. Until only recently humans knew next to nothing about the reproductive biology of elephants. But through the work of the Oregon Zoo and elsewhere, we know much more about elephant breeding cycles, the length of gestation, and how elephants rear their young.


Elephant Artwork

Few creatures have inspired cultures throughout the world as much as elephants. That inspiration can be seen in the artwork on display at the Lilah Callen Holden Elephant Museum. The museum is home to African artwork like a beaded elephant mask, made by the Bamileke people of Cameroon. Next to it on the wall is a carved wooden elephant mask made by the Bamoun Tribe of Cameroon. Also on display is a bronze elephant sculpture from the Upper Volta region of West Africa in present day Burkina Faso. From Thailand, the museum displays a pair of intricately carved teak doors decorated with elephants.


Elephants have not just inspired traditional artists. Three prints of elephant drawings made by the famous surrealist Salvador Dali hang in the museum. So too does a painting of Wooly Mammoths by well-regarded Portland area artist Tom Hardy. Of historical interest is the engraving made from Nicolas Marechal’s original sketch of an elephant, which was made at the Natural History Museum in Paris in 1801. Marechal made sketches of every animal in the museum’s collection that were then published in a catalogue – one of the first such zoological texts ever published.


Elephant Ancestors

Elephants are not native to the Americas. But their ancestors lived here thousands of years ago. Mastodons, like Wooly Mammoths, are related to modern elephants. Mastodons are believed to have become extinct sometime between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago. The Mastodon skeleton at the Oregon Zoo is thought to be around 7,000 years old. It was excavated from a sight at Churches Corner, in Hillsdale County, Michigan. Other Mastodon skeletons have been excavated in Oregon, including in the Portland area.




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Oregon Zoo anxiously awaits a baby elephant that could supercharge attendance

Sunday, August 17, 2008 KATY MULDOONThe Oregonian Staff
Anxiety simmers at the Oregon Zoo, and it's no wonder.

For the first time in 14 years, just as the zoo faces key decisions about its future, one of its Asian elephants -- the institution's flagship species -- is about to give birth.

If all goes well, an adorably wobbly, floppy eared calf could draw tens of thousands of extra visitors and prompt a wave of positive publicity at an opportune time: Metro, which owns the zoo, will ask voters in November to approve a $117 million bond measure to upgrade exhibits and, perhaps, buy more land for the elephants.
But as Tony Vecchio recently put it: "I am one of those people saying not to count your baby elephants before they . . . ."

Without finishing his sentence, the zoo director made his point. Elephant pregnancies seldom deliver predictability.

Stillbirths are common. Calf mortality rates run at least 30 percent, according to the zoo.

To make matters sketchier, Rose-Tu -- the last elephant born at the zoo, Aug. 31, 1994 -- is a first-time mother-to-be who never has witnessed a birth. If she delivers a healthy calf, keepers have no idea how she might react. Some inexperienced elephant mothers nurture their newborns; others neglect or kill their young.

Such an outcome might incite animal activists who campaign against captive breeding and fight to divest zoos of elephants, or push them to give the animals vastly more room to roam.

So the zoo crew plans for best-case scenarios -- and for the worst.

They expect that 7,666-pound Rose, near the end of a typical 22-month pregnancy, could deliver as early as this week or as late as Oct. 8. Tests indicate she's probably carrying a female.
Volunteers monitor her round-the-clock, watching for signs of labor. The veterinary staff draws blood daily, looking for a drop in the hormone progesterone. When it plummets, labor should start within five days.


Racing to breed


Elephants have entranced Oregonians since at least April 14, 1962, when Portland's beloved Packy arrived. All ears and wrinkles and wiry hair, 225-pound Packy was the first elephant born in North America in more than 40 years.

That year, attendance tripled.

A baby boom followed. Portland's zoo produced 27 elephant calves from the 1960s to the 1990s, more than any other North American zoo.

But like pachyderm programs nationwide, Portland's ran short of space for the burly beasts. Breeding stopped.

Zoos didn't reinvigorate their programs until a study published in 2000 delivered ominous news: Unless breeding resumed, so many Asian elephants would have died that by 2050 fewer than 20 would remain in North American zoos.

Today, programs affiliated with the Association of Zoos & Aquariums hold about 141 Asian and 150 African elephants; the Oregon Zoo's three males and three females are Asians.

Coast to coast, recent headlines trumpet breeding successes:

"Meet Li'l Miss Elephant" -- St. Louis Post-Dispatch
Zoo's Newest Baby Elephant Stands on Her Own Four Feet" -- Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

"Mikki is Packing a Baby Pachyderm" -- The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Ky.

After Mikki, an African elephant, delivered the Louisville Zoo's first-ever calf in March 2007, the zoo saw something the Oregon Zoo might expect: record-breaking attendance. Oregon Zoo attendance topped 1.5 million in the fiscal year ending June 30.

When people hit the gates," said Kara Bussabarger, Louisville's public relations manager, "they say, 'Let's go see Scotty!' . . . He's the face of the zoo now."

He's the face on the Louisville telephone book, too.

When the St. Louis Zoo's calf, Maliha, first went on exhibit in 2006, among those waiting to see her were crews from ABC's "Good Morning America" and NBC's "The Today Show."

Clearly, elephants -- charismatic megafauna, as they're known -- can be good for zoos, and their offspring an even bigger plus.

Life grows richer and bonds among a herd's females tend to strengthen when a calf arrives; they all help raise the little one, as wild cow elephants do.

"It's important to the zoo from an education and conservation standpoint," said Mike Keele, Oregon Zoo deputy director and coordinator of the Association of Zoos & Aquariums' Asian Elephant Species Survival Plan.

"It allows us to see the inner workings of a herd," he said. "Most people won't be able to go to Asia or Africa to see them in the wild. That's a special thing we can provide our visitors and, hopefully, inspire them to want to take action to conserve elephants" threatened by habitat loss, poaching and extinction.

Zoos, however, have taken heavy publicity hits over elephants. While some, such as Oregon's, expand their collections, others, such as the San Francisco Zoo, hand their elephants over to sanctuaries and close inadequate exhibits.

Even much-anticipated births have caused anguish.

In January, the 40-year-old matriarch of the Fort Worth Zoo's elephant herd went into labor and died a few days later, along with her unborn calf. Veterinarians figure a torn uterus killed her. Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo lost Hansa, a 6-year-old calf, to a herpes virus last summer. And this month, that zoo's Chai, 29, suffered a miscarriage.

"I'm not allowing the staff to spend too much time or money advertising or marketing something that is so risky," Oregon Zoo's Vecchio said. "When we're comfortable that it's successful, we might do a few things . . . but I'm reluctant to jinx it."


Worrying the details


For now, zoo employees and volunteers watch, wait and worry.

"There are like 80 million things I'm worried about," said Mitch Finnegan, chief veterinarian.

Top among them: anything other than a quick, uneventful labor and delivery.

If labor goes too long, Rose-Tu's calf could die before she can deliver. If the delivery is traumatic, Rose-Tu might be too weak to care for her newborn
Before he took charge of the veterinary crew, Finnegan attended one other elephant birth: Rose's. What no one knew was that her mother, Me-Tu, carried twins, a rare condition typically fatal to mother and calves.

Me-Tu made it.

Her second calf, born about eight hours after Rose, survived only an hour.
Finnegan and his crew have studied footage of previous births. They've gathered gear -- everything from oxytocin, a medication that speeds labor, to a human breast pump for stimulating milk production.

Their most unusual medical tool: a winch mounted to a forklift, in case they need to pull the calf out of the birth canal.

Caesarean-section is not an option; an elephant apparently never has survived one. However, veterinarians have had some success with a surgery similar to an episiotomy, making room to reach inside and try to assist the calf during a difficult birth.

When Rose's time comes, her exhibit will close to the public; it could be days or longer before it reopens, depending on how the birth and bonding processes go -- eventualities impossible to predict.

Veterinarians and keepers will stay nearby but mostly out of Rose's sight, Finnegan said, "to let her do her own thing, without hovering and stressing her."

Unlike some zoos that tether cow elephants during labor and delivery, Portland's has selected to leave Rose unchained inside the barn, along with Shine and Chendra, the zoo's other cows.

Chances are, Rose will look anxious. She could quit eating or distance herself from Shine and Chendra. As contractions intensify, she might lean into walls or stretch her legs.

If all goes well, at some point later she'll bear down. Her rear legs will bend and separate. A bulge will appear below her tail as the calf descends and emerges, covered in the amniotic sac.

Rose -- or keepers if need be -- will move the sac so the calf can breathe.

Then "all hell breaks loose," said Keele, a former elephant keeper who was on duty for six Oregon Zoo births and on call for six more.

"The females should start trumpeting and roaring," welcoming the newest member of their herd.

Katy Muldoon: 503-221-8526; katymuldoon@news.oregonian.com

NEWS ON ZOO'S PREGNANT PACHYDERM: IT'S A GIRL!

....Rose-Tu enjoying a dip at the Oregon Zoo....



PORTLAND, Ore. -- In just a couple of months, Rose- Tu, the Oregon Zoo's pregnant Asian elephant, will be having a baby girl. Probably.

"We're pretty confident it's going to be a girl," said Mitch Finnegan, the zoo's lead veterinarian, "although I'm still not putting any money on it."

The announcement came following analyses of hormone levels in Rose- Tu's blood. Typically, Finnegan says, testosterone levels would be higher if the baby were going to be male. However, he adds, with so few elephants born in captivity, the sample size is fairly small and there is still a bit of room for error.

The much- anticipated addition to the zoo's elephant herd, conceived in late 2006, is due to arrive any time from late August to early October. Tusko, a 13,500- pound, 36- year- old Asian elephant, is the father.

Although Rose- Tu is nearly 20 months pregnant, you'll still need to look closely to spot her "baby bump," Finnegan says. The bulge that some visitors have been noticing is actually "part baby, part breakfast" -- the result of Rose- Tu's abdominal organs shifting to make room for the baby.

"For many wild animals," Finnegan notes, "the signs of pregnancy are a lot less obvious than they are in humans."

In the fall of 2006, Tusko was introduced to Rose- Tu in hopes the two would make a love connection. The zoo monitors the female elephants' ovulatory cycles closely and planned the introduction for the appropriate time.

"We were confident that when we introduced Tusko to the girls, sparks would fly," said zoo Deputy Director Mike Keele, who also serves as the Asian elephant Species Survival Plan coordinator for the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. "From what we saw that day, Tusko was a quite the gentleman, a real 'lady's elephant' -- a true Casanova."

Rose- Tu gets along very well with Tusko and seemed receptive to his advances. Her keepers describe Rose- Tu as playful and highly intelligent; they hope she will be a doting mother.

"The birth of a new baby is the most enriching thing that can happen in an elephant herd," said Keele. "If all goes well, and we hope it will, the rest of the herd will tightly bond and protect the baby as if it were their own. There are some risks associated with being a first- time mother, but we're hopeful."

With more than 30 years of zoo experience, Keele is keenly aware that there is a 30 percent infant mortality rate among captive Asian elephants. There is no reliable data on the infant mortality rate in the wild.

"There can be complications to both mother and calf," said Keele. "A calf may be stillborn or get lodged in the birthing canal. We'll be monitoring her pregnancy very closely."

The Association of Zoos and Aquariums' Species Survival Plan for Asian elephants recommended that Rose- Tu be bred with Tusko. The AZA, of which the Oregon Zoo is an accredited member, strives to maintain a sustainable population of the endangered elephants in North America. Currently, birth
rates are lower than necessary to do so. With few bulls and low birth rates -- combined with an aging female population -- the North American elephant population is at of risk becoming extinct.

In the late 1990s, scientists warned zoos that unless a reproductive management program was undertaken, North America was in danger of not sustaining a viable elephant population. Statistics indicate that if females do not become pregnant by the age of 25, their ability to reproduce is
severely diminished.

The Oregon Zoo has a renowned breeding program for endangered Asian elephants. More than 25 elephants have been born at the zoo, beginning with Packy in 1962. From 1994 to 2005, the zoo suspended its breeding program because it lacked the space to house four bull elephants. The zoo could not risk the 50 percent chance of having another male, which would grow up to be a powerful bull elephant with no home to place him.

Rose- Tu, born Aug. 31, 1994, was the last elephant born at the zoo.

Rose- Tu is a popular elephant within the herd and with her keepers. She is always looking to tease her herd mates and shares a strong friendship with Chendra, who is nearly the same age. Rose- Tu is the second smallest elephant in the herd, weighing about 7,600 pounds.

Tusko arrived at the zoo in June 2005 on a breeding loan. He has successfully sired three calves in the past -- two while living in Canada and one in California.

An endangered species, Asian elephants are represented by an estimated 38,000 to 51,000 individuals living in fragmented populations in the wild. Agriculture, deforestation and conflict with humans pose a constant threat to wild Asian elephants.

Portland's Waterfront Blues Festival

A clown comes from the heart, not the nose."

Jodi Carlton:
It all started after work on Friday. I met my fellow clowns-to-be in a room at the World Trade Center Portland (located in downtown Portland). We were all a little unsure of what to expect, and though we were very excited to be there, there was a decided twinge of fear lurking in the room.

The group had the opportunity to play with the costume pieces that our leader, Angel Ocasio, had brought along with him. We found the possibilities amazing as we viewed the rack full of clothes and many boxes of accessories.

All during the evening we did exercises to help loosen us up and learn to play with our emotions. We'd even portray animals, such as giraffes and owls. At first some of the clown candidates were uncomfortable, but as the evening progressed we all started to let go of our fears and have fun!

I know many of us went home that night trying to figure out what character we would eventually be -- ready to really discover our inner clowns.
On Saturday we began the work to find our clown characters. We also started learning to use clown make-up and decided what our individual clown faces would be. It was great fun to watch the character in each of us start to emerge during this process of applying makeup. Once we found what makeup worked, we headed for the clothing and accessories and began putting together our costumes.

Angel showed us fascinating things, like the limitless possibilities of using items from our daily life and making these into clown props. Who'd have guessed all the things you can do with a lollipop, a balloon, a water bottle and a paper bag! We were able to draw on his 28 years of experience as a professional clown and walk away with a new appreciation for this amazing art form.
Sunday was about the clown in each of us. We came in, applied our makeup, put on our costumes and away we went! This was our chance to officially introduced our clown character to the assembled group. We laughed, cried, and laughed some more.

I think our new Clown Corps is as unique as all the wonderful individuals who are in it. Each person is beginning to find that inner clown, and in the process of doing this weekend workshop, new friendships have been forged. We've been introduced to something special that will forever be a part of our lives.

Personally, I can't wait for my grandkids to meet 'Rosy,' my own clown. And who knows? Maybe one day they'll decide they'd like to 'clown around,' too!

2008 Rose Festival Fleet

United States Navy
USS Lake Champlain (CG 57)
USS Preble (DDG 88)
USS Kidd (DDG 100)
USS Gary (FFG 51)

Canadian Maritime Forces
HMCS Edmonton
HMCS Whitehorse

United States Coast Guard
USCGC Active
USCGC Bluebell
USCGC Henry Blake
USCGC Black Fin

Tall Sailing Ships
MV Lady Washington
MV Hawaiian Chieftain

Historic Ships
Sternwheeler Portland
PT 658

Fleet Week:

Wednesday, June 4 - Sunday, June 8

Naval vessels from the United States Navy, U.S. Coast Guard and the Canadian Maritime Forces arrive from around the world for a four-day visit to the City of Roses. Ship tours will be available daily.

The USS Charleston was the first ship to visit the Portland Rose Festival in 1907 and the navy's annual Rose Festival Fleet Week visitation has been an annual tradition for nearly 80 years.

Canadian Maritime Forces began visiting the Rose Festival in 1924 and continue to bring ships each year. The Battleship USS Oregon visited the Rose Festival in its final tour before decommissioning in 1925. The mast of the USS Oregon now resides in Tom McCall Waterfront Park.