Elephants trumpet, squeak and flap their ears after their complex move across an Australian city

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Elephants trumpeted, touched trunks and flapped their oversized ears upon reuniting with their herd after a complex, five-day move from an urban Australian zoo to a much larger enclosure.

The nine Asian elephants were transported 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Melbourne Zoo in the heart of the city to an enclosure 10 times bigger at the Werribee Open Range Zoo, Zoos Victoria said on Thursday. Police escorts and synchronized traffic lights aided their journey in three convoys of trucks.

The animals' reactions demonstrated they were happy with their move, the elephants’ manager Erin Gardiner said.

“The behaviors that we saw that indicated to us that they felt really comfortable and also excited to see each other were lots of ear flapping, trunk touching, lots of vocalizations,” Gardiner said.

“So, roaring, trumpeting, tweaks and squeaks. And so all those interactions helped us understand that they are happy to see each other and feeling comfortable. By the afternoon, those calves were playing together and interacting and I just couldn’t believe how well they traveled,” Gardiner added.

Planning the move began almost two years ago by training the elephants to enter and exit the transport crates, veterinarian Bonnie McMeekin said.

“Without that training and comfort, I think it would have been really hard to do it safely,” McMeekin said.

The elephants weighing a combined 23 metric tons (25 U.S. tons) were given mild sedatives to reduce their stress during their 40-minute journeys. The adults were also tethered around their ankles to hold them steady on the road.

The trucks mostly traveled around 60 kph (37 mph) but took turns cautiously, McMeekin said. The crates were air-conditioned and purpose built, three of them specifically for mothers and calves to travel together.

The herd has one adult male, five adult females and three calves, all 2 years old.

The adult male, who is the most solitary member of the herd, made the journey alone on Feb. 6 in a crate hoisted onto a truck by a crane. On Saturday, one truck carried an aunt and another carried a crate with a mother and calf. Two mothers with calves plus the herd matriarch followed in three crates on Monday, when the herd was reunited.

McMeekin said two days was a long time for females in a herd to be separated.

The herd on Wednesday was introduced into their new 21-hectare (52-acre) enclosure that has two 3.5-meter- (11-foot-) deep swimming pools. The enclosure is as big as the entire Melbourne Zoo where the herd had outgrown their 2-hectare (5-acre) habitat.

Their new 88 million Australian dollar ($55 million) home has mud wallows, specially designed elephant barns and a communal sleeping area filled with 3,300 metric tons (3,600 U.S. tones) of sand.

The herd will be given weeks to settle into their new home before the habitat is opened to the public.

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This story has been edited to correct the spelling of Eric Gardiner's name from Gardner.