Elephant Self Storage, Elephant of the month, Nandita
Audiences around the UK were shown the birth of baby elephant Nandita, in August 2015 to experienced mum Thi on Channel4’s hit documentary ‘secret life of chester zoo’ that focused on the animals in Chester Zoo.
Nandita’s birth came as a very big sigh of relief for the zoo after another calf had passed away just a few weeks after her birth from the Elephant endotheliotropic herpes virus (EEHV) which is a deadly virus that affects young elephants typically around weaning age. In total Chester Zoo has lost 5 calves, for many years they have funded vital research into EEHV but researchers have yet to be able to culture the virus which is necessary to create a vaccine and determine what drugs are most effective. At present, drug treatment is effective in only around one-third of cases and survival rates overall are around 20%.
For this reason Nandita has become a prized member of the herd and although very independent she will always have the protective eyes of staff watching over her for many years to come.
