LV ZOO WELCOMES A NEW ELAND, WHILE MOURNING THE LOSS OF ONE OF ITS OLDEST RESIDENTS
Lehigh Valley Health Network is the Official Motherhood Partner of the LV Zoo

(Schnecksville, Pa.) —Lehigh Valley Zoo in conjunction with Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), is thrilled to announce the birth of a male Common Eland born to mother Alexis and father Code. The Zoo is also excited to announce his name is Stacks, named by a Zoo donor. Stacks was born on Thanksgiving, Nov. 27. 

This birth brings the eland herd up to five members. Just last January, another male calf, David, was born to mother Moira and father Code. Eland social structure maintains a hierarchy of males, and the highest-ranking male is the main breeder.

Eland pregnancies last between eight and nine months, which gave the Animal Care and Veterinary staff time to be prepared for his arrival. The calf and its mother were kept in a separate space to allow the two to bond and to also give the calf time to nurse, grow and strengthen before being introduced to the rest of the herd. The calf has since had an examination by LV Zoo’s Veterinary team and was found to be a healthy male, weighing 75 pounds. As the second largest antelope species, a full grown male common eland can weigh over two tons.

LVHN is the Official Motherhood Partner of the Lehigh Valley Zoo.

Unfortunately, shortly after the eland birth, the zoo experienced the loss of one of its oldest residents, Plains Zebra, Glenda, who was approximately 26 years old when she passed on Dec. 2. Born in Texas, Glenda moved to the LV Zoo in 2007. Throughout her time in Schnecksville, Animal Care staff found that she was always very sassy and spirited. Glenda lived with the Zoo’s ostrich, Bane, and her zebra herd-mate, Rylea. They spent their days grazing together and were known to spend a lot of time right in front of the habitat at the guest viewing area. While zebra can be a difficult animal to train, Glenda was an eager participant. She was known to run to the fence to meet her keeper for a session.

Staff and guests have had the pleasure of visiting with Glenda for over 18 years, and she will definitely be missed.

Guests can visit whole eland herd, along with the other Zoo residents, during its daytime hours of Wednesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. LV Zoo will be closed Dec. 24-25, as well as Dec. 31 and Jan. 1. Tickets can be purchased at lvzoo.org.

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About Jefferson

Lehigh Valley Health Network is now proudly part of Jefferson Health. Nationally ranked, Jefferson, which is principally located in the Greater Philadelphia region, Lehigh Valley and northeastern Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey, is reimagining health care and higher education to create unparalleled value. Jefferson is more than 65,000 people strong, dedicated to providing the highest-quality, compassionate clinical care for patients; making our communities healthier and stronger; preparing tomorrow’s professional leaders for 21st-century careers; and creating new knowledge through basic/programmatic, clinical and applied research. Thomas Jefferson University, home of Sidney Kimmel Medical College, Jefferson College of Nursing, and the Kanbar College of Design, Engineering and Commerce, dates back to 1824 and today comprises 10 colleges and three schools offering 200+ undergraduate and graduate programs to more than 8,300 students. Jefferson Health, nationally ranked as one of the top 15 not-for-profit health care systems in the country and the largest provider in the Philadelphia and Lehigh Valley areas, serves patients through millions of encounters each year at 32 hospitals and more than 700 outpatient and urgent care locations throughout the region. Jefferson Health Plans is a not-for-profit managed health care organization providing a broad range of health coverage options in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for more than 35 years.

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As a member-supported non-profit organization, Lehigh Valley Zoological Society was founded in 2004, but it has been treasured community landmark for centuries. Located in the Lehigh Valley’s Trexler Nature Preserve, the mission of the Lehigh Valley Zoo is to connect its community with nature to empower people to protect wildlife. We have achieved our mission and educated more than five million people. Accredited by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA), the Lehigh Valley Zoo hosts year-round, family-friendly events and activities, educational programs, and camps. To learn more about Lehigh Valley Zoo, we invite you to visit our website, www.lvzoo.org, or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok.

— SmartFun—