Another Kenyan elephant has given birth to twins, 38 years since a similar birth was witnessed in the country.
“Paru from the PA family has given birth to twins, Norah and Katito, male and female,” Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) confirmed the good news in a Facebook post seen by TUKO.co.ke on Monday, May 28. According to KWS, the last time an elephant gave birth to twins in Kenya was in 1980.
“We know! That was 38 years ago when Eclipse and Equinox were born in 1980. Now we have another set of twins,” the wildlife authority said.
An elephant’s pregnancy and gestation can last about 22 months. The long gestation duration, experts say, is due to the huge size of the animal, which leads to slower development of the baby elephant in the mother’s womb.
“Pregnancy in elephants is maintained by several ovarian hormones, known as corpora lutea. The long gestation time allows for proper development of the elephant’s brain. This cerebral development also allows the elephant to survive from the moment it is born,” Josie Turner, a specialist in Animal Welfare, noted on Animalwised website.
The giant animal is said to be highly intelligent, a factor that enables it to feed itself using the long and massive trunks. Elephants in Kenya remain a major target of poachers due to their valued tusks but the government has put in efforts to safe guard them.