ORLANDO, Fla. — Disney’s Animal Kingdom has welcomed a new resident.
Corra, a 312-pound, two-month-old African elephant made her debut at the theme park on Thursday, according to Disney Parks.
“Her mother, Nadirah, was also born at Disney’s Animal Kingdom making Corra the first second-generation elephant in Animal Kingdom’s history,” Scott Terrell wrote for the Disney Parks Blog. She’s also the first African elephant born at the park in seven years.
Corra will join other elephants at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Savanna, including her parents Mac and Nadirah. Corra’s grandmother, Donna, and her aunts, Stella and Luna, will all be by Corra’s side.
Corra’s entrance into the world is said to have been two years in the making when the animal care team and endocrinologists noticed that Nadirah was showing signs that she was “ready to become a mom.”
Eventually, a partner was found: Mac.
Nadirah is said to have had a healthy, 22-month pregnancy and “voluntarily” participated in her own care.
Of course, at a place like Animal Kingdom, it takes a village to properly welcome an endangered animal like Corra into the world.
Terrel writes, “From timing maturity levels and coordinating introductions of mom Nadirah and dad Mac, to observing mating behaviors, monitoring hormonal cycles and the big labor and delivery day – the science behind the birth of a baby animal at Disney is facilitated by an orchestra of unsung heroes who quietly work behind the scenes and go to incredible lengths to ensure the genetic diversity and healthy population of endangered species.”
Hopefully those “unsung heroes” are ready to get back to work, because Disney Parks also had a surprise announcement while welcoming Corra.
“And there’s one more thing. Wait…maybe two. Yes, that’s right, we are expecting two more baby elephants in 2025!”
Read the full Disney Parks Blog here.
