Who’s the daddy?

Louisville Zoo determines baby elephant’s father

(EDITOR’S NOTE: Click here and here to see side-by-side photos of the baby and his father. Can you see any resemblance?)

Just in time for Father’s Day, the Louisville Zoo has verified that the father of Scotty, the Zoo’s baby elephant that was born March 18, is a 28-year-old African elephant from the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium named Jackson.

Jackson was determined to be the father through DNA testing since mother Mikki was artificially inseminated (AI) in June 2005.

Jackson is described by the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium as a very easy going bull.

“He is very patient and works well with his handlers,” said Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium Zoo Elephant Manager Willie Theison. “And he is really good with his two kids here at Pittsburgh—Victoria and Callee.”

Jackson, who was one of three possible sires, also loves to eat and can’t get enough treats.

“Jackson’s secret vice is Girl Scout cookies,” said Tracy Gray, Manager of Public and Media Relations at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium. “He loves the Thin Mints! I think Jackson himself is probably responsible for a shortage of Thin Mints every year.”

Jackson has fathered the most calves in the United States with six off-spring, Gray said, and two more are expected soon at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium.

Louisville Zoo General Curator Steve Wing said elephant breeding at accredited zoos provides critical support for elephant conservation. Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ (AZA) elephant breeding program is administered under the auspices of the AZA’s elephant Species Survival Plan (SSP), a cooperative program of all accredited zoos with elephants.

“The collaboration between zoos when it comes to propagating endangered species, especially elephants, is gratifying,” Wing said. “Elephants are a keystone species that influences the composition of their environment while often benefiting other species. Saving elephants and elephant habitats means saving habitats for many other species as well. Breeding elephants is not easy—it is hard work. But we believe our hard work to have Scotty can help the elephant population and was definitely worth it.”  

Since Scotty’s father resides at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, Wing said the Louisville Zoo plans to make a donation to its conservation program.

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Scotty and mother Mikki are on exhibit daily at the Louisville Zoo from 10 a.m. to noon and 2 to 4 p.m., weather permitting.

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The Louisville Zoo is the state zoo of Kentucky and a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization. Our collections, which include botanical gardens, are accredited by the American Association of Museums (AAM) and by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), which is building North America’s largest wildlife conservation movement by engaging and inspiring over 143 million visitors and their communities to care about and take action to help protect wildlife.

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