AYUTTHAYA: A 36-year-old elephant named Chamchuree has given birth to a pair of male and female calves, a rare event for the animal, according to the Phra Kochaban Foundation.
The twins were born in the Royal Elephant Kraal Village in Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya district on Friday night, foundation president Laithongrian Meephan said on Saturday.
Chamchuree first gave birth to the male calf, weighing about 80 kilogrammes, and after 18 minutes gave birth to the female, weighing 60kg, to the surprise and joy of the caretakers, he said.
The twin calves mark the kraal’s 94th and 95th births in 27 years of operation and their father is the 29-year-old elephant named Siam, he said.
Mr Laithongrian said he had seen twin births, but the calves were usually of the same sex.
Twins with different sexes were rare, he said, noting Chamchuree’s calves could be the world’s first twin elephants of different sexes.
A mahout was injured while helping Chamchuree during the delivery and he was taken to hospital for medical attention, according to Mr Laithongrian.
Meanwhile, a team of wildlife and park officials in Kanchanaburi has launched an operation to locate a sick female elephant named Soithong so that they can provide medical treatment.
According to local officials, the 15-year-old wild elephant has a swollen left cheek that needs to be examined and treated and the team is now looking for the animal to give her proper treatment.
The elephant, which gave birth to a male calf two years ago, was spotted with the injury approximately a month ago when she wandered close to a village.
Authorities were alerted and a specialist team was formed to locate and treat the elephant. It is unclear how much success they are having.