Elephant gives birth to twins in Bandipur

The mother elephant and her calves were discovered by a group of people on a safari on the Mysuru-Ooty road near Bandipur, Star of Mysore reported.

An elephant has given birth to twins in Karnataka’s Bandipur, about 213 kms away from Bengaluru, a video of which has gone viral on social media.

An elephant has given birth to twins in Karnataka’s Bandipur, about 213 kms away from Bengaluru, a video of which has gone viral on social media. (Reuters)

A person aware of the developments said that the news was fascinating and happened in the Bandipur forest range.

“It is an extremely rare occurrence,” said the official, requesting not to be named.

The video of the mother with two calves has been shared widely on social media.

The mother and her calves were discovered by a group of people on a safari on the Mysuru-Ooty road, Star of Mysore reported.

Karnataka accounts for one of the highest elephant populations in the country, according to the state government.

The birth of twins, experts said, account for less than 1% of total births.

“They form less than 1% of total births. So encounters and documentations are very rare. Even to raise two calves in wild is also difficult for the mother. Fingers crossed !!,” Praveen Kaswan, an IFS officer who commands a huge social media following, said in a post on twitter.

Elephants are often blamed for destruction of crops in places like Chikmagaluru, Kodagu, Chamrajanagara and other parts across Karnataka.

Bandipur National Park is regarded as one of the better-managed national parks of India. It is located in midst of the western ghats and is an important part of the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve that constitutes Karnataka’s Rajiv Gandhi National Park (Nagarahole) to its Northwest, Tamil Nadu’s Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary to its South, and Kerala’s Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary to its Southwest. The total extent of Bandipur National Park is 872.24 sq km. It is located partly in Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar District and partly in H.D.Kote and Nanjangud taluks of Mysuru District.