Joe Kahlo
The ‘miracle’ twins born in Sri Lanka are the first born here since 1941
The male twins were born to a 25-year-old mother elephant called Surangi and father called Pandu who live at the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage.
“Both the calves and the mother are doing fine,” Renuka Bandaranaike, head of the orphanage, told the BBC.
“The babies are relatively small, but they are healthy,” she added.
Video footage captured shows the newborns on their feet and eating the leaves by their mother’s leg.
According to experts, the last recorded set of twin elephants being born in the country were in 1941.
Elephants typically give birth around 4 to 5 times in their lifetime, the chance of one of these being a twin is around 1%.
The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage has become a great tourist attraction for Sri Lanka.
Established in 1975, the establishment assists wild elephants who are in need of rescuing or treatment. It is now home to more than 90.
