Baby Elephant Declared Dead in the Womb is Born Alive

Staff at Taronga Zoo in Sydney are Declaring the Birth of a Baby Elephant a Miracle as it was though to Have Died

A pregnant elephant at Sydney's Taronga Zoo was examined during her pregnancy and staff declared that her baby had died inside her womb as it was upside down and face first, and no elephant had ever survived or been born that way. The examination did not find any vital signs from the baby elephant and staff were forced to declare that the calf had died.

However, according to the Telegraph, the staff were astonished when the baby elephant was born alive despite the long stop and start birth that could have put too much pressure on the baby.

The baby has been under observation ever since he has been born and it is still unknown if he will survive to long-term. It is not known if he turned naturally in the birth canal in order to be born at this point, but staff want to do a further examination.

The calf is reported to be 'weak' but Porntip is doing 'well'.

It is hoped that the calf will survive as he is part of a controversial breeding program for Taronga's Asian Elephants to breed the endangered animals in captivity.