A very emotional video of a former circus elephant mourning over the body of her partner that collapsed and died in Taigan Safari Park in Crimea, Russia.
The sad video showed the elephant nudging on the lifeless body of her companion, Magda, and trying to stand up. Even the person recording the event cried when she held the trunk of her dead mate laid on her body to wake her up.
The grieving elephant did not allow veterinarians to remove the dead body of her friend for several hours. Watch the video below:
Both elephants were said to be females and were of Indian origin. The life one, named Jenny, had its pseudo-penis visible which can confuse viewers to think it was a male.
The two had been performing in circus shows for 25 years before they retired in 2021.
Asian elephants live to about 40 years old in captivity and much longer in the wild which ranges between 60 to 80 years. Captive elephants, which are usually put on display in zoos and circus shows, often die much younger due to health issues.
Though elephants can be dangerous, like one that crushed its handler to death, they are generally loving, living in tight social groups and forming lifetime bonds that exist even after death. Elephants in the wild have been noted to return to the grave/death site of family members and examine their bones.
