Last Elephants leave Sydney: Pak Boon and Tang Mo bid farewell to Taronga home

By the end of April, the last two Asian Elephants residing at Taronga Zoo Sydney, in Mosman, will be departing for South Australia. 

The move has been coordinated between Monarto Safari Park and Taronga to form a new social herd with three other elephants from New Zealand and Perth. After years of planning between both zoos, it is almost time for Sydney’s last two elephants to make the big leap.

While the move was initially planned for late March, the process was delayed when Pak Boon presented with a health concern to her right eye. A spokesperson for Taronga Zoo Sydney told the Lorikeet the delay “ensured that Pak Boon received treatment and is in optimal health ahead of their big move.” Preparation for the move has included voluntary daily training for the elephants aiming to “build positive associations to the transport crate and their safety leg bands”. 

Monarto Safari Park is by far the largest zoo in Australia, coming in at a whopping 1,500 hectares to Taronga Zoo Sydney’s 26ha. Pak Boon and Tang Mo will be joined there by Burma from Auckland Zoo, along with Permai and Putra Mas from Perth Zoo.

Pak Boon and Tang Mo have called Taronga Zoo home for 19 years since they were flown in from Thailand in 2006. Earlier in March, the two elephants received a traditional Thai blessing and ritual ceremony ahead of their transportation. 

While many Sydneysiders may be sad to see them go, the move is part of a vital mission to secure a future for the species. Since 1986, Asian Elephants have been considered an endangered species, with fewer than 50,000 existing in the wild. The biggest threat to Asian elephants, according to the World Wildlife Fund, is habitat loss and fragmentation, primarily driven by the expansion of human settlements, plantations, and industry into the elephants natural habitat. 

Replacing the two elephants at Taronga will be Hari, a Greater One-Horned Rhino from the Taronga Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo. Hari will be joined by three water buffalo, who he will share a mixed-species habitat with.

The final opportunity for visitors to see Pak Boon and Tang Mo will be during this upcoming ANZAC Day long weekend, from 25th-27th of April.