Is it cruel to keep Mundi the elephant at Puerto Rico’s zoo?

Mundi has spent 34 years as the only elephant at the Dr. Juan A Rivero Quintero Zoo, operated by a Puerto Rico’s Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. The zoo is not in compliance with federal regulations for facilities that exhibit animals. In 2017, the zoo lost its federal license to operate and remains closed to the public. The zoo is the subject of multiple lawsuits and complaints filed by animal protection organizations. The government, however, insists that it will make the changes needed to comply with regulations and plans to reopen. From what we know about the needs of elephants, is it animal cruelty to keep Mundi at an unlicensed zoo? Specifically, could keeping her at the zoo violate the federal Endangered Species Act?

Mundi’s Story

Mundi is believed to have been born in 1982 in Zimbabwe, Africa. Two years later, she was captured along with 63 other elephants. They were brought to the state of Florida to form part of a collection of wild animals at a private estate. In 1986, she was sold to the circus “El Mundo.” In 1988, she was gifted to the Dr. Juan A. Rivero Quintero Zoo in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico.

In 2017, the zoo lost the federal licenses required to operate as a facility that exhibits animals. Federal agency reports from the previous 10 years documented an egregious disregard for animal welfare, damage to animal enclosures, lack of supplies and food, and uncleanliness. At the time, Puerto Rico’s Department of Sports of Recreation operated the zoo.

In May 2018, the organization Elephant Aid International (EAI) contracted with the department to transfer Mundi from the zoo to EAI’s sanctuary, as a donation. However, in a process that culminated in January 2019, the Department of Sports and Recreation transferred ownership of the zoo to Puerto Rico’s Department of Natural and Environmental Resources (DNER). Soon after the transfer, DNER informed that it was rescinding the contract to donate Mundi. According to news articles, DNER rescinded the contract because the sanctuary was unprepared to receive the elephant. DNER further stated that its future plans included reopening the zoo. Mayaguez politicians and pro-zoo organizations had protested giving Mundi to a sanctuary, indicating Mundi was a public resource, and should remain in Puerto Rico.

Today, Mundi continues to reside at the zoo. She lives on an area measuring 15,000 Sq. Ft. This is about the size of three basketball courts. She also lives alone, and has been alone for 34 years.

A zoo without a permit to operate

While the zoo has remained closed since 2017, there are a reported 326 animals that continue to reside there. The DNER has not released a definite plan to reopen or recover the federal licenses needed exhibit animals.

Animal protection organizations and groups such as Vinculo Animal PR; Rescatistas P.R. Trabajando Unidos; Movimiento Vida Animal PR; Pro Bono ONDA; and the Comisión Especial Sobre los Derechos de los Animales, Colegio de Abogados de Puerto Rico, have actively protested the zoo. The groups ask that the government close the zoo, and agree to transfer the animals to sanctuaries, at no cost to the government. Some organizations have sued government officials and agencies demanding access to public information. This includes medical records, specific care protocols by species, contracts for veterinary services, and budgets.

Lack of documentation and medical records

The lawsuits revealed that many documents do not exist, including medical records. Specifically, of the approximate 300 animals that resided in the zoo in 2020, the government was only able to produce medical documentation on 17 animals. These documents are reportedly incomplete, and not all are certified by a veterinarian. Based on the documents received as a result of the lawsuit, the Puerto Rico Department of Justice began a criminal investigation of the zoo for violations of Puerto Rico’s Animal Welfare and Protection Act, Law No. 154 of 2008. Among its provisions, this law requires that any animal guardian, whether they be an individual, agency or corporation, provide adequate space for an animal to move freely and maintain healthy physical condition.

Chimpanzee dies in May 2022

On May 23, 2022, the DRNA informed that a chimpanzee with an untreated heart condition had died. This sad news has added to the questioning by animal protection groups as to the current conditions of the zoo; and what exactly are the concrete plans the DRNA has for reopening. An online poll shows that as of June 2, 2022, 60% of respondents think the government should not continue operating the zoo.

What about Mundi?

One of the issues repeatedly touched upon is the government’s stubborn hold on the African elephant Mundi. Perhaps this is because of the animal’s sad past and the amount of time she has spent in captivity, as well as the fact that there was a sanctuary ready to welcome her in 2018, and that these plans were abruptly changed. Or maybe it is because we value elephants as one of the most charismatic mammals. For this reason, we relate to their pain and loneliness, and are especially saddened by their misfortune. Either way, when speaking about the zoo, both zoo enthusiasts and animal activists will bring up Mundi’s story and her future.

The social and cognitive lives of elephants

We consider elephants as one of the most social and intelligent species. We compare their ability to relate to each other, as well as to other animals, to our own abilities to empathize and maintain friendships. They display a range of cognitive abilities, and demonstrate self-awareness. Some accounts of the abilities of elephants even suggest they have superior cognitive and learning skills than humans, and better memories.

They create strong bonds

Elephants require the companionship of other elephants in order to thrive, and form strong social bonds. In the wild, they will live in groups of anywhere between 12 to 50 individuals.

Young elephants nurse until the age of 4 or 6. Like human babies suck their thumb for comfort, baby elephants will suck their trunks. Parents care for adolescents until the age of 13 to 20, which is also the time they reach sexual maturity. Females will stay with their herd for life. Males will leave at around 14 to 16 years old, and roam amongst herds.

Elephants mourn their dead, and suffer psychologically when they see another elephant die or separated from the herd.

They have excellent memories

An elephant can also remember another elephant years after separation. An emotional anecdote tells of Shirley and Jenny, who were briefly together at the same circus. Jenny was captured as a baby. Shirley acted as a substitute mother. The elephants remembered each other when they met approximately 24 years later at an elephant sanctuary.

They are capable of learning new sounds

Elephants are capable of vocal production learning. This refers to the ability to learn and produce new sounds that are not typical of the species. Elephants may produce foreign sounds in response to what they hear from others, or as a way of imitation. For example, elephants have been known to imitate the sounds of trucks, as well as those produced by other animals.

They are self-aware

Elephants are one of the few mammals to have passed the mirror test. This test examines subjectivity and an animal’s ability to recognize itself as an individual. The test basically consists of an animal’s ability to see itself in the mirror and know, “That is me.”

Elephants also demonstrate body awareness. For example, elephants can recognize when their own body is an impediment to completing a task. They’ll take action to “move themselves out of the way.”

They are wild animals

Elephants are still wild animals. They are not domesticated like dogs, cats, and some farm animals. Elephants that are trained to perform tricks or obey commands have undergone an abusive practice known as “spirit-breaking.”

Spirit-breaking is an actual term used in the world of elephant-training. Trainers must break the spirit of an elephant to get them to do tricks such as painting, and to consent to being ridden. This is done when they are young. Spirit-breaking can consist of keeping an elephant in small spaces, starvation, isolation, and beatings. “Domestication” occurs once they understand they must engage in certain behaviors in order to avoid abusive treatment. A bullhook is a tool used in training an elephant. Photographs show zoo personnel using the tool on Mundi.

Elephants and Zoos

Modern zoos no longer “train” elephants, and are careful not to market themselves as places of entertainment. Instead, they present themselves as places of species conservation and education. They stress how their protection and breeding programs give a second chance for species on the brink of extinction. They also assume that humans that learn more about about wild animals and their habitat, will care more about their protection, and more conservationist choices.

Even assuming that repopulation is possible for some species, and that some zoos genuinely believe and practice their message of education and conservation, it is not true for all. When it comes to elephants, the more we know, the less plausible it is that keeping elephants in captivity has or will have any demonstrable positive impact on species repopulation. Additionally, the more we learn about elephants’ emotional, social and physical needs, the more apparent it is that keeping them in captivity is actually an act of cruelty, and does more harm than good.

Zoos do not contribute to elephant species conservation or repopulation

Elephants are listed as an endangered. Yet more than 30 North American zoos have closed their elephant exhibits since the 1990’s. The Seattle Times conducted a 2012 article investigated the deaths of 321 elephants kept in zoos accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). The AZA is an accreditation organization whose member zoos comply with certain program requirements and captivity standards. AZA-accredited zoos are considered the “best” zoos in North America in terms of animal welfare, conservation and education.

The study showed that most of the elephants in captivity died from conditions that developed as a result of captivity. The elephant infant mortality rate at zoos is 40%, which is three times that of the mortality of elephants in the wild. Half of the elephants in the zoos were dead by the age of 23. A facility has never released a captive elephant back into the wild.

Zoos cannot demonstrate the educational impact of elephant exhibits

In terms of education and changed behavior, it is unclear whether zoo visitors learn anything from animal exhibits, or adopt conservationist practices after visiting zoos. A survey conducted by the organization Friends of Woodland Park Elephants showed that 88% of zoo attendees who visited the elephant exhibits had not changed their behaviors, and 97% learned of elephant poaching (often blamed for species decline), from sources other than the zoo.

Zoos cannot meet the social, cognitive and physical needs of elephants

While the home range of an African elephant herd in the wild is 11,0000 Sq. Km., the AZA recommended space for an elephant kept in an accredited zoo is 5400 Sq Ft. of outdoor space. Zoos that are not AZA-accredited do not have a minimum amount of space they must comply with.

Elephants in the wild learn from their companions, with female African elephants living in groups of over 12 elephants during their entire lives. The AZA requires that accredited zoos keep female elephants in groups of 3 or 4, or have the space to hold this many elephants.

It is obvious that even AZA-accredited zoos do not provide elephants anywhere near the quality of life enjoyed by a wild elephant. Lack of space and inadequate flooring cause foot problems, including arthritis, and boredom and stress lead to stereotypical behaviors such as swaying, weaving and pacing.

Zoos and violations of the Endangered Species Act

Private citizens and organizations have sued zoos under the federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) to try to move elephants to sanctuaries. In 2015, the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) sued the San Antonio Zoo, an AZA accredited zoo, under the Act. According to the complaint, the San Antonio Zoo kept an Asian elephant, Lucky, alone since 2013, and did not not provide her sufficient shade and pools for relief from the heat. ALDF dropped the suit when the zoo brought in two additional elephants as companions for Lucky.

Unlawful “taking” under the ESA

The Endangered Species Act authorizes private citizen suits for the unlawful “taking” of endangered or threatened animals. Unlawful taking occurs, in part, when acts are harmful or harassing to wildlife.

A harmful act is one that actually kills or injuries an animal. A harassing act or omission is one that actually creates the likelihood of injury, or annoyance to the extent that there is a disruption of normal behavioral patterns. Courts have made determinations on whether a zoo’s actions are harassing based on generally accepted practices of animal husbandry; and compliance with the regulations of the federal Animal Welfare Act. This act requires that exhibitors, such as zoos, provide minimum conditions for housing and care of certain animals.

Cases against zoos under the ESA

In 2016, a federal court in Iowa determined that the Cricket Hallow Zoo and its operators had failed to comply with the standards of the Animal Welfare Act. According to the court, the zoo had injured and harassed lemurs and tigers. Specifically for the lemurs, which are primates, the zoo failed to provide enrichment and their social isolation constituted harassment.

In 2018, a private citizen sued another AZA-accredited zoo, Buttonwood Park Zoo in Bedford, Massachusetts, for violations of the ESA. The animals involved in this suit were two Asian elephants. The complainant alleged inadequate veterinary care, shelter and socialization, as well as the zoo permitting one elephant to continue harmful behavior towards his companion.

The Buttonwood Zoo prevailed in this case. The court considered that the elephants were receiving adequate veterinary care, as required by the Animal Welfare Act, and otherwise complied with all the Act’s provisions. A court of appeals affirmed.

In 2019, a federal court in Maryland found that the Tri-State Zoological Park of W.Md., Inc. violated the ESA when it failed to provide adequate enrichment; adequate housing and social settings; adequate routine care and adequate veterinary care to lemurs, tigers, and lions.

Conclusion

If education on African elephants has taught us anything, it is that they have a rich emotional and social life. The range of their cognitive capabilities are probably yet unknown to us. A zoo, AZA-accredited or not, cannot act as a substitute for an elephant’s wild habitat, and will not be able to provide an elephant with the life they were born to live.

It is not possible to determine if the DNER is harassing Mundi as defined by the ESA without an assessment of whether the elephant’s exhibit and maintenance complies with the standards of the Animal Welfare Act. However, we do know that the facility lost its federal licensing because of repetitive animal welfare violations. DNER’s insistence on keeping Mundi, despite knowing of it’s inability to provide the elephant best life she could live, certainly sounds like a lay-person’s understanding of harassing, abusive conduct.

Thank you for reading!

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