Anybody know of someone doing research on them currently?
I'd like to know what kind of home range they require, generation times, if their gestation cycles can be manipulated, etc.
A buddy of mine is putting a game ranch together in Zambia (Namibia sized, not South African) and I'd like to see if it's possible to manage them for tusk size. (And trying to avoid my hairy embryonic transfer idea...)

He might track down and consult with Richard Harland from Zim who could possibly advise on the feasibility of the idea, and put him in contact with the proper people. Gestatation is a long ~22 months, and cows start breeding at 11-13 years old, bulls 25yr+ in the wild (per Richard's book, NDLOVU). I don't know when bulls reach optimal tusk growth, but could be in the 50-70yr range.

Managing elephants for tusk size sounds like a very long-term investment...

Good luck!

It's a very complicated subject in many ways - for example it's been proved that a family unit translocated into an Elephant free area will step up their breeding rate to compensate. Then the area quickly gets overpopulated and you have a far more complex problem than the area they were originally translocated from had originally. For example, do you cull or translocate the entire unit or split the unit..... that's juat the tip of the iceberg.

You might try to get hold of a copy of ' The African Elephant as a Game Ranch Animal' published by the Wildlife Group of the South African Veterinary Assoc. ISBN 1-875088-02-4 which should answer most of your questions.....

If your friend is considering other DG species, the same group publish a seperate book on each of the Big 5.

[QUOTE]
Managing elephants for tusk size sounds like a very long-term investment...
[QUOTE]

... and that's an understatement.

S.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'll try to follow up on them. As for the investment length...hence the embyronic transfer bit, but flushing elephant cows, and collecting elephant bulls is scary enough, w.o. having to worry about trying to regulate the cow's cycle.

I guess I just don't see how a good trophy population can be maintained otherwise -- If some indicator's could be found which say that a 4 or 5 year old bull calf will make a good 50 year old trophy, then he could be culled/sterlized at that age.

Right now, all I can think of is to sterilize or kill all the tuskless animals, and I don't even have more than a hunch to go on there. They are supposed to be more aggressive, and they're, relatively, worthless as a trophy, so what ever genetics that cause it should be removed, but I'm not sure that it will actually increase the overall tusk size of the pop...which is why I should start reading those books, and sneak back into A&M to borrow their online journal access...

Try Jeanetta Selier at Mashatu Main camp located in the Tuli area of Botswana. She is working on her PHD on Elephant behavior. They have a significant population of elephants there, although they are not known for large ivory. She is not a hunter herself, but her RSA family members hunt and she is not opposed to it. The last email address I have for her is mashatu.research@telkomsa.net. I took photos and measurements of the bull elephant I killed next door in the Shashi area of Zim and sent them to her to help her research. She was appreciative, but ignores me now since I did a tuskless cow hunt which she considers to be highly unethical.


You can borrow money, but you can't borrow time. Go now.

Don Heaths D.Sc. looked in part at elephant trophy quality trends since 1945 in Zim, and eliminated vegetation as a consideration in final tropy size. Vegetation though contributed to the tusk quality (if you are interested in carving them)

/

Alf's comments about culling family units reflect my own in that what is a fairly simple problem in the KNP which can be solved by either culling the family unit in the KNP or by translocation of an entire unit to a smaller reserve elsewhere becomes a much bigger problem for the smaller reserve a few years after the translocation.

Some reserves find it easier just to buy and translocate bulls which means they don't have the problems of the social structures found with cows and calves. However, the ethics of that, at least to me, are dubious to say the very least. - unless the reserve is used for photography only..............

I don't know Jeanetta Selier personally, although I do know her by reputation - but I reckon she's a woman with similar views to me.

Hey Aglifter,

When I saw your inquiry, I figured that Cleve Cheney would be the man to tell you exactly where to go for the information you seek. Here is a page with Cleve's bio.

Cleve Cheney


Below is his reply to me, although I have edited the phone number for Dr. Ian Whyte to facilitate easier dialing from the United States. Please remember Kruger is 6 hours ahead of us in time, so for best results, call really late at night or really early in the morning.


Some work has been done on elephant with respect to manipulating gestation cycles, but it turned out to be a bit of a disaster as it created all sorts of problems with social behaviour. Elephant cows were put on a prophylactic that was to prevent them coming into oestrus but it backfired and these poor cows received the constant amorous attention of bulls until the experiment was terminated.

I tend to agree with your statement, that if elephants are sourced from a gene pool that produces large tuskers and have the right nutrition (here trace elements and minerals appear to play a vital role) then elephants bearing bigger ivory should result.

There is definitely a strong correlation between trace elements and the size of ivory. If elephants with genetics for bigger ivory are introduced into an area that is lacking in minerals and necessary trace elements the end result could be that the ivory might not end up being as large as expected.

Probably the best person to contact is an ex- colleague of mine who still works in the Kruger National Park. He is an elephant specialist: Dr. Ian Whyte who is based in Skukuza. I have a telephone number for Skukuza reservations who will be able to give a number for Ian.

Direct dial from the US: 011-27-13-735-4030.

Kind regards

Cleve


Godd luck in Zambia and I hope this helps your friend with his game ranch project.

Cheers,

Alan

Yeah, the trace minerals would seem important -- the only issue would be how to supplement the elephants -- if there's a shortage, I imagine all the animals would benefit, but the scale needed might be difficult...now, if I could come up w. a way to provide a high mineral, fluoridated water supply...

I appreciate all the help, from everyone who's commented.