Behind the scenes at the St. Louis Zoo, 4-month-old Asian elephant calf Jet has been steadily growing under the care of his mother, Jade. Soon, he’ll be ready to take his first wobbly steps in front of visitors.
In preparation, the elephant habitat is being “baby-proofed,” said Katie Pilgram-Kloppe, zoological manager at the St. Louis Zoo's River's Edge. The 500-pound baby elephant’s development means he is “very, very close” to being ready to be seen by the public.
An exact date hasn’t been set for the debut. The decision also comes down to the connection between Jet and his mother.
“We're seeing lots of great progress,” Pilgram-Kloppe said. “Once we kind of see those signs from them, that they feel really comfortable and sure of themselves, and he has explored every inch of that habitat, then I think we'll be ready to have guests come out and see him.”
Jade is a first-time mom, but she’s not raising Jet without support — their extended, multigenerational family includes five other Asian elephants that doat over their youngest relative.
Jade and Jet have bonded in an area of the zoo called the Elephant Woods. Since Jet’s birth last November, the zoo has posted updates of his development — including a video of him learning to drink with his trunk.
Pilgram-Kloppe can already see Jet’s personality coming out. “He’s kind of bold, spunky, ‘I'm ready to explore everything’ and just run headfirst at it,” she said Thursday. “He did that one of the first times we put him [in] a habitat: He ran straight to a pile of rocks and had to figure out how to climb over them. And Jade has been really good about letting him explore but staying close enough nearby that she can respond if he needs help with anything.”
Pilgrim-Kloppe joined St. Louis on the Air to share updates on Jet’s growth and preparation for moving into the larger elephant habitat. Jet isn’t the only young resident of the zoo drawing attention: The zoo recently sent polar bear Kali to a zoo in Toledo, Ohio, for twin, 2-year-old polar bear cubs Kallik and Kallu.
To hear the full conversation about the St. Louis Zoo, baby elephant Jet and to learn about twin polar bears Kallik and Kallu from St. Louis Zoo Curator of Carnivores Julie Hartell-DeNardo, listen to St. Louis on the Air on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube, or click the play button below.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. Jada Jones is our production assistant. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr. Send questions and comments about this story to talk@stlpr.org.
