Shirley the Elephant Celebrates Milestone Birthday at 70
A super-sized birthday party is in the works for the oldest living elephant in Tennessee.
Shirley, an Asian elephant living at The Elephant Sanctuary in Tennessee, turned 70 years old on July 6. This could be considered as a major achievement since the average lifespan of elephants in captivity is normally 42 years for Asians like her and 47 years for those that hail from Africa.
However, life was not always a breeze for Shirley, who was first captured when she was only 5 years old in the jungles of Sumatra, Indonesia during the 1950s.
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She was a part of a world-traveling circus for 22 years. While traveling, she experienced a lot of traumatic incidents including the confiscation by Fidel Castro in Cuba back in 1958. She was also on board a ship that caught fire and sank in 1963 and survived a highway crash a few years after. In 1974, Shirley was also involved in a fight with another elephant, which resulted in an injury that will cripple her back leg forever.
Shirley was obtained by the Louisiana Purchase Zoo and Gardens in 1977, where she spent 20 years as the only elephant in the vicinity before she was handed to the sanctuary to have a better life.
"Shirley has been living here, going strong, and has bonded with many elephants," Education Manager Joy Owens said in a statement that was reported by Nashville Public Radio. "Shirley definitely has an air about her ... many elephants seem to recognize Shirley as the oldest, as the wisest, maybe there's something about her that the other elephants seem to respect," Owens added.
USA Today revealed that her primary caretaker from the Louisiana zoo Solomon James was around when Shirley embarked on a journey from the zoo to the sanctuary. But the moment she arrived in Tennessee, something emotional happened when she spotted another Asian elephant known as Jenny.
"The two elephants nearly bent the bars of their barn stalls to be near to one another," the sanctuary's communications coordinator Kate Mason said. Then they discovered that Shirley and Jenny actually performed together in the same traveling circus.
The sanctuary celebrated Shirley's 70th birthday by making an elephant-sized number 70 made from edible materials like bamboo, fresh flowers, and other produce. The staff also asked fans to post birthday wishes for through cards, song, poem, or post on social media using the hashtag #ShirleyTurns70.
On Saturday, July 14, a family-friendly Caregiver Chat featuring Shirley's elephant caregivers will be hosted by the Elephant Discovery Center at 27 E Main St, Hohenwald, Tenn.
