Hey, Mom! Can we have an elephant . . . or two? 

In June, twin baby elephants were born in Thailand. That’s rare. One was a boy and one was a girl—which is even rarer. 

Caretakers at the elephant camp expected to help deliver a calf (baby elephant). But when a second calf showed up, they were shocked. Mom elephant Chamchuri seemed as surprised as everyone else by the duo.

The elephant caretakers (who are called mahouts in Asia) had to act quickly to keep the frightened mom from injuring her new daughter. One of the mahouts broke his leg when he stepped between the mom and baby to prevent tragedy. 

Elephants are a big part of Thailand’s national identity. Thai kings rode elephants into battle. A white elephant adorned the Thai flag until 1917.

Baby elephants take longer to grow inside their mothers than other animals—almost two years. They also suck their trunks like human babies suck their thumbs. In elephant families, the mother makes the rules. A mother elephant usually leads a family with as many as 12 members. This pack of pachyderms is made up of mom’s kids and mom’s sisters and their kids. And the boy elephants? Once they grow up, they live alone. 

Elephant families travel together munching plants. A grown elephant can eat up to 300 pounds of plant food (grass, fruit, roots, and bark) in one day.