Celebrate Raja's Birthday Dec. 27 At The St. Louis Zoo

ST. LOUIS, MO — The Saint Louis Zoo’s bull elephant, Raja, will receive special presents to stomp open for his 25th birthday on Wednesday, Dec. 27, at River’s Edge in the zoo, weather permitting. Visitors are invited to sing “Happy Birthday” and cheer for Raja.

Born on Dec. 27, 1992, Raja was the first Asian elephant born at the Zoo and has since sired four female calves — Maliha, Jade, Kenzi and Priya.

“We’re very excited to celebrate Raja’s birthday,” said Martha Fischer, the zoo's curator of mammals and ungulates. “It seems like it was just yesterday when Raja was born and from that day forward he’s been beloved by so many.”

For the party, zookeepers and volunteers have constructed birthday presents filled with some of the elephant’s favorite things, including cereal, melons, bananas and popcorn. Large trees will be provided for the elephants to push over and encourage natural browsing. Other elephants from the family also may be celebrating with treats of their own in River’s Edge.

Weather permitting, from 10:30 to 11 a.m. zookeepers will provide keeper chats and animal training demonstrations at the elephant habitats. The zoo says the three-generation Asian elephant family is thriving under the excellent care provided by a highly-trained professional animal care team.

After the celebration, visitors can sign a super-sized birthday card and learn more about the elephants and elephant conservation through keeper chats, activities and biofacts until 1 p.m. at Lakeside Cafe. Birthday cupcakes and hot chocolate will be available for purchase.

For more information, visit stlzoo.org/raja.

The Zoo is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, except on days of U.S. Bank Wild Lights when it closes to the public at 4 p.m. For a complete list of hours and information on Wild Lights, visit stlzoo.org/wildlights.

See how much Raja has grown:

Photo by Robin Winkelman/St. Louis Zoo