Name: Litsemba (leet-sahm-ba), which means “hope” in SiSwati. Her nickname is Semba.
Species: Loxodonta africana ssp.
Sex: Female
Born: 1990
Estimated age: 24
Back story
She was born in South Africa’s Kruger National Park in 1990 and taken to Swaziland in 1994. She arrived at San Diego Zoo’s Safari Park in 2003 and was brought to Reid Park Zoo with her family in March 2012.
Family ties
Semba has been bred numerous times with 24-year old African elephant Mabu, a playful, confident bull who enjoys roughhousing with his calves. Semba had her first calf, Punga, in March 2007, and her second, Sundzu, in December 2010. She seems to worry over the whereabouts of her calves, both of whom live at the zoo with her and Mabu.
All about Semba
Weight: At approximately 7,000 pounds, she is the largest of the Reid Park Zoo’s females
How to spot her: She has thick, full hair on her tassel.
Personality: She used to be the most timid of the group but has become more social. She gets along best with Mabu and will tolerate Lungile, a sweet, subordinate female whom Semba enjoys pushing around at times. But Lungile will baby-sit the calves when Semba wants some time alone. Semba enjoys learning and especially likes the hay pellets trainers use to reinforce her good behavior.
