DeWayne Bevil, Sentinel Staff Writer
A 24-year-old African elephant died Tuesday at Disney's Animal Kingdom after a brief, isolated illness, Walt Disney World officials say. Tumpe, a female that was moved to Animal Kingdom in 2007, had been suffering from skin sores and gastrointestinal problems for two months. The staff provided medical care including blood tests, ultrasound, bacterial and viral testing, electrocardiography and laparoscopic surgery, the company said. A pathology report is expected within weeks, but Disney experts think it was isolated and the rest of the herd is safe.
According to the Elephants Encyclopedia database, Tumpe came from the Riverbanks Zoological Park in Columbia, S.C. She was born in Aug. 25, 1983 at the Toronto Zoo, one of two daughters of father Tantor and mother Tequila. Tantor died at age 20 in 1989; Tequila died in September of last year at age 38. Tumpe's older sibling, Thika, is still at the Toronto Zoo.
Tumpe is the third elephant to die at Disney's Animal Kingdom: In 2005, a newborn died after a Caesarean-section birth, and the calf's mother, Ibala, died from a uterine infection from that C-section. The park still has 12 elephants on the grounds.
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/features_lifestyle_animal/2009/03/elephant-dies-at-disneys-animal-kingdom.html
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