At 1 month old, Reid Park Zoo’s baby elephant, Mapenzi, is starting to use her trunk more accurately.

 Courtesy Reid Park Zoo

Since she was born on April 6, Reid Park Zoo’s 360-pound bundle of joy has started to use her trunk, bonded with sister Nandi and shown high levels of energy.

The zoo’s elephant calf, Mapenzi β€” Penzi for short β€” turned a month old last week. The Star will be documenting Penzi’s milestones each month until she’s 1 year old.

ELECTRIC PERSONALITY

β€œShe goes about her day with a lot of enthusiasm,” elephant supervisor Cassie Dodds says.

Penzi showed high levels of energy when she was only a couple weeks old, but now it’s β€œoff the charts,” Dodds says.

Reid Park Zoo’s baby elephant, Mapenzi, turned 1 month old on May 6.
THINGS SHE’S LEARNED

β€œShe’s starting to use her trunk much more accurately,” Dodds says, adding that the elephant team thought it would take another month for her to do so.

Penzi is beginning to use her trunk to get her own water and pick up things like grass or hay. Nursing is still Penzi’s No. 1 source of nutrition, however.

As temperatures soar in Tucson, Penzi is learning to cool herself down in the mud wallows. Though she hasn’t fully committed yet, she likes to sit on the edge of the mud. A couple times a day, a keeper will turn on a hose to create tinier mud puddles for Penzi to roll around in.

And Penzi is fast β€” but β€œnot quite as coordinated as she is fast,” Dodds says. β€œShe’s running as quickly as she can, but if there’s a little piece of grass or any deviation on the ground, she’ll stumble through it. She’s having a lot of experience with how to fall and not injure herself.”

Read more about the calf here. Video courtesy of Reid Park Zoo

Penzi doesn’t quite know her name yet, but she can recognize when keepers call the herd.

She’s also been able to identify other members of the herd β€” sometimes searching out brother Sundzu or dad Mabu. The zoo’s habitat is also home to aunt Lungile.

β€œIt’s been really neat to see them all learn to interact with each other,” Dodds says.

SISTERLY LOVE

β€œShe’s closest with Nandi and Nandi is closest with her,” Dodds says of Penzi and her 5-year-old sister, who was the first elephant born in Arizona.

Reid Park Zoo’s baby elephant, Mapenzi, is learning to cool herself down in the mud wallows, though she is still a bit cautious.

If Penzi goes into the yard of the habitat before Nandi does, Nandi will softly vocalize β€” trying to figure out where Penzi went, Dodds says. When Nandi finds her, she’ll examine her baby sister and make sure she’s all right.

When remembering back to what Nandi was like at a month old, keepers are seeing many differences.

Penzi’s energy is higher and she’s been more advanced with her trunk and body movements, but she’s also been cautious. Nandi, on the other hand, had a stronger personality and was more adventurous. Nandi wasn’t afraid of those mud wallows, for example.

The zoo is currently closed to the public amid the coronavirus pandemic, but Dodds says she’s excited for the community to see Penzi in person.

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Contact reporter Gloria Knott at gknott@tucson.com or 573-4235. On Twitter: @gloriaeknott