South Africa’s last remaining zoo elephant, Charlie, has been released into the wild after 40 years in captivity. Captured from Zimbabwe’s Hwange National Park in 1984, Charlie spent decades performing in the Boswell Wilkie Circus before being moved to South Africa’s only national zoo in the early 2000s. Over recent years, animal welfare groups raised concerns about his health, citing signs of distress common in captive elephants. After years of negotiations and scientific evidence proving the negative impact of zoos on elephants, Charlie was transferred to the Shambala Private Reserve in Limpopo province on Tuesday.
The EMS Foundation and animal welfare group Four Paws, who campaigned for Charlie’s freedom, celebrated the move as a “milestone for better animal welfare in South Africa.” His new home is a 10,000-hectare reserve with a thriving elephant population, where he will be closely monitored as he reintegrates into the wild. The organisations hope Charlie will eventually join the reserve’s elephant community, living freely as intended. South Africa’s wild elephant population exceeds 25,000, though the species remains threatened by poaching and habitat loss.
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