The Knysna Elephant Park, established in 1994, stands as a beacon of hope for African elephants in South Africa. It is both nationally and internationally recognised as one of the best captive elephant facilities in the world, dedicating over the last thirty years to elephants.
An African elephant in its natural habitat near Knysna.
A Sanctuary for Elephants in Need
Since 1994, the Park’s primary objective has been to offer elephants in the need the chance of a new and better home; and we have worked tirelessly to achieve this goal. The Knysna Elephant Park (KEP) was the first facility in South Africa to house and care for orphaned African elephants.
The park's story began in 1994 on the 200-ha farm owned by Ian and Lisette Withers when they heard two young calves rescued from a cull in the Kruger National Park needed a home. In setting up their facility, the Withers’ laid claim to the KEP becoming South Africa’s first-of-kind. The Knysna Elephant Park was established on a beautiful 200ha farm between Knysna and Plettenberg Bay.
The Park has taken each and every one of these animals on:
- Calves rescued from culls
- Elephants relocated from reserves where conflict with rhino threatened their survival
- A tiny calf, searching for milk after losing her mother in a translocation
- Orphaned and abandoned calves from reserves and zoos
- Animals no longer wanted by their owners as they were seen to be unworkable
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Over the next 27 years, this would become the perfect home for the elephants in need. More than 40 of the animals have since been cared for and raised here to either become part of the resident herd or be moved to other reserves and facilities around the country. These animals include relocated animals, orphaned calves, and elephants rescued from culls.
They have all found a home with the Knysna Elephant Park ‘family’, which extends well beyond the physical borders of the Park. This ‘family’ extends well beyond the physical borders of the Park. Some can not be released and remain with us, but many others have moved on (in their bonded groups) to new homes where they have another chance at a wild life at reserves such as Garden Route Game Lodge, Botlierskop Private Game Reserve, Gondwana Game Reserve, Aquila Game Reserve and Inverdoorn Game Reserve. Elephants living wild in these reserves are still considered to be very much part of the KEP family.
Some elephants have stayed and become part of our resident herd. Others have moved on to other facilities and even reserves where they now roam freely and have started their own new families.
Oupoot the Knysna elephant story trailer
Conservation Efforts and Ethical Tourism
Here, at the Knysna Elephant Park, we support and welcome these changing trends - increased awareness of the welfare requirements of animals in captive situations can only have a positive impact on the animals in these tourism facilities; and the way in which their owners and managers care for them. Comparisons between the Knysna Elephant Park and facilities in Asia, can only serve to highlight the positive and responsible manner in which the Park operates its elephant encounters and interactions. Our tourism activities are conducted ethically and always with elephant welfare as a top priority.
The tourism industry has recently seen a growing trend within the wildlife sector, where tourists are being made aware of the need to view animal activities and attractions they may visit during their holidays, in a different light. All over the world, animal welfare organisations and animal rights groups are asking tour companies and tourists to think carefully about the ethics and responsibilities associated with many of these wildlife tourism ventures.
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Many of these non-governmental organisations have focused on the use of elephants for tourism purposes, particularly in Asia, where elephant trekking is a very popular tourism activity. The ‘traditional’ methods of breaking and training Asian elephants are well known and have been highly publicised. These methods use a variety of cruel and abusive methods to ‘break’ the animals, so that they can be ridden and controlled. In many cases the animals are kept in poor conditions, tethered for long periods of time and often isolated from other elephants. In the past, many tourists visiting elephant facilities in Asia have been unaware of these training methods.
However, recent awareness campaigns and an emphasis on responsible tourism has served to bring these issues to the fore; and, as such, tourists are now more aware of their choices; and how these choices may contribute to animal welfare.
Tourist interacting with elephants at Knysna Elephant Park.
Visitors to the Park enable us to give our elephants the best possible facilities, nutrition and care. The elephants who remain at KEP have become ambassadors for their species, allowing visitors to have a close personal encounter with these gentle giants. These opportunities allow people to meet elephants in a way that would otherwise be impossible.
Our style of management offers guests the opportunity to get up close and personal with our elephants, on elephant terms. Responsible and educational interactions allow guests to appreciate the awe-inspiring presence of these animals, but still give the elephants the space and freedom to choose where they want to move, what they want to eat and who they want to interact with. Visitors to the park are privileged to have a personal encounter with our gentle giants, and leave having gained a new-found respect for these animals, as well as a better understanding of the African elephant and its plight across the continent. Most importantly, by visiting the Park and experiencing our elephant herd, guests make a direct contribution to elephant husbandry and care.
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Management and Welfare
Our management style includes what we call a “controlled, free-range environment”, which allows our elephants as much freedom as possible, within the borders of the Park. Following the feeding session, the elephants are free to move away and graze, browse, wallow or play. Guests are then invited to follow the elephants and enjoy their time amongst the herd: observing and learning about elephant biology and behaviour.
Over the last several years, the Park, in conjunction with AERU has recognised the need for changes to be made to traditional elephant management protocols used in South Africa. These changes have been vital to prioritise elephant welfare; and to balance the needs of elephants, with the tourism activities conducted at the Park.
These changes include the following:
- More emphasis placed on responsible and education interactions; as opposed to touch and feel.
- Trying to get our guests to become part of the herd by just being with them; and watching the natural behaviours from a distance.
- Feeding and tactile interactions are kept to a minimum; try and give the elephants as much choice and freedom as possible.
- Changes made to the boma (elephant sleeping quarters) which allow them more interaction, space and movement overnight.
- Feed is specially formulated and produced on-site at the Park, ensuring the elephants get the best possible nutrition, all year round.
- An enrichment programme aimed at keeping elephants stimulated, both physically and cognitively.
- The traditional bullhook* has been redesigned to no longer include the metal hook. Bullocks, used in the field during the day, are now a simple fibreglass walking stick.
If ever we identify an area where welfare may be compromised, our flexible style of management allows for immediate notification, so that changes can be made to benefit the elephants.
The research unit and its volunteers contribute on a daily basis to the welfare and management of our elephants - there is no other facility in the world that has that capability!
Long-Term Goals and Objectives
Long-term goals and objectives for the Park include the following:
- To build a 2000 hectare free-range habitat, so that elephants may be released into a reserve / sanctuary type of environment
- This would comprise South Africa’s first REAL elephant Sanctuary and be open to elephants in need throughout the country
- Funding needing amounts to approximately R30 million, to get enough land to start the pilot project and make the long-term project viable.
*The bullhook is an internationally recognised tool in the handling of elephants. It is specially designed with the welfare and safety of both elephants and staff in mind. It can be used in the right way; and, unfortunately, can also be used in the wrong way. Used in the correct manner, it extends the handler’s reach so that the handler may touch specific points on the elephant’s body, as a way of signalling to the elephant what the handler is asking it to do; much like a horse’s bridle and bit. Protocol requires that unnecessary force must be avoided and only recognised cue points on the elephant’s body are allowed to be used.
These movements are paired with verbal commands and positive reinforcement such as praise or food. In this way, the need for physical contact is reduced, as the elephant learns to associate the command with the reward.
The Knysna Elephants: A Troubled History
The elephants that live in Knysna forests are a constant and mysterious part of life here in the Garden Route. We know they’re there, we hear stories about them all the time, and they feature prominently in our art and our literature. We humans have never got on very well with the Knysna elephants - or perhaps it would be better to say that they never got on well because of us.
Ivory hunting and loss of habitat to agriculture had all but exterminated elephants from the Cape region of Africa by 1900. The last elephant in the vicinity of the Cape Peninsula was killed in 1704, and elephant populations west of the Knysna region were extirpated prior to 1800.
The mystique of the Knysna elephants reached world-wide acclaim in the 1984 novel Kringe in die Bos/Circles in the Forest penned by Dalene Matthee. Through the novel's telling of the mystical kinship between its lead character Saul Barnard - a woodcutter determined is to prevent the destruction of the Kynsna Forest during the gold rush - and bull elephant legendary Old Foot/Oupoot (for whom the last surviving Knysna elephant is affectionately named by some), the novel highlighted the plight of the Knysna elephants impacted by human encounter.
Quotes such as “The elephant is the soul of the forest. If the elephants go, the forest will die” and "They are the last great ones, ghosts in the trees, walking the paths of their ancestors” stirred her audiences fascination with the elephants and a commitment to their plight.
Cover of Dalene Matthee's novel "Circles in a Forest".
SANParks conducted an extensive scientific study led by ecologist Lizette Moolman in 2014. The study saw more than 80 remote camera traps installed across the Knysna forest to gather data between 2016 and 2018 across the elephants’ known range of about 180 km2 between Knysna and George.
These monitored 38 locations in the known range for more than a year, obtained 140 photos of the single cow, estimated then to be 45 years old. Following the 2018 camera trap survey, trap cameras kept live by SANParks have only captured footage of Strangefoot - who they see about every three weeks on average according to Moolman. She is expected to live to the age of 65, which would imply another two decades of her unnaturally lone existence.
The last known Knysna elephant, Strangefoot/Oupoort, is confirmed to still be alive with confirmation of sightings of her captured by SANParks via trap cameras and ranger sightings, with a preference toward monitoring her from afar to reduce human interaction. An advocate for securing companionship for Strangefoot, Davy came under heavy criticism by SANParks for his actions in entering the park without a permit and tracking the elephant for weeks to secure his encounter and subsequent footage.
The African Elephant Research Unit (AERU)
Knysna’s Elephant Park is more than a tourist destination keeping the region’s links to these once plentiful animals alive. It has also been a major contributor to research through the African Elephant Research Unit (AERU), a non-profit trust established here in 2009.
The coming of the dedicated research arm in the form of the AERU was, however, a considerable milestone. “AERU’s role at KEP was established out of recognising a serious lack of research on elephants in a semi-captive environment with a focus on their welfare and husbandry,” says AERU chief Dr Maud Bonato.
“It was formed to facilitate the practice of research guiding management. It has evolved primarily through testing and improving our research methods, improving our infrastructure and expertise by sending team members on training programmes and building up a more proficient team.”
She adds that the fruits of this endeavour have empowered AERU to contribute to the scientific world through publishing findings and contributing at symposiums. Since 2021, AERU has presented at numerous conferences, including the International Elephant Foundation symposium, the International Congress of Zoology, and the International Society for Applied Ethology.
“We see this as critical as such interchange of information benefits all and drives advances towards the best practices for animal welfare globally,” says Dr Bonato. “Research is the pivotal base on which to make informed decisions, especially in semi-captive instances where more intensive management is practiced.”
Through monitoring elephant behaviour and tourist activity, AERU has helped the Park evolve throughout the years, using science as a platform to guide the park beyond former practices such as elephant riding and tourist elephant touching activity,” says Dr Bonato.
The AERU comprises a research team and volunteers. Its set of captive elephant data is described as being “unrivalled, as far as we know, by any other such database anywhere else in the world”.
While the AERU’s focus is very much on the elephants, the 30th anniversary occasion will certainly present an opportunity to treat the herd to extra fruit enrichments in celebration, of the Park’s birthday; recognising the important role they play as ambassadors to the public for education and awareness, as well as a resident herd offering a social foundation for any potential newcomers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q - Can I touch and interact with the elephants?
A - Yes, at Knysna Elephant Park, you can have direct contact with the elephants. Trained guides facilitate the interactions, allowing visitors to touch and feed the elephants under their supervision.
Q - Is it safe to be close to the elephants?
A - The safety of visitors is a top priority at Knysna Elephant Park. The park follows strict safety protocols and guidelines to ensure that all interactions with the elephants are conducted in a secure and controlled manner.
Q - Can I take photographs during my visit?
A - Yes, visitors are encouraged to take photographs during their visit to Knysna Elephant Park.
Q - Can I book a visit in advance?
A - Yes, it is recommended to book your visit to Knysna Elephant Park in advance, especially during peak tourist seasons.
Q - Are the elephants at Knysna Elephant Park wild or captive?
A - The elephants at Knysna Elephant Park have been rescued from various situations, including those who were orphaned, injured, or unable to be released back into the wild.
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