I have a wildlife zoo

Chapter 500: The Mysterious Legend of the Elephant Graveyard

Pingping pushed the bottom of the mud pit with her feet and moved a little deeper!

Her nose seemed to have a mind of its own, flinging joyfully left and right, sending splatters of mud flying everywhere.

The elephant’s massive and robust body rolled in the mud pond like a baby, showing a charming and adorable posture, creating a wonderfully cute contrast!

The tourists were overjoyed and couldn’t stop laughing.

At this moment, Fang Ye started his timely explanation, "Mud baths, including for elephants, are a behavior common to many animals!

Does everyone know ’Peppa Pig’? In the first episode, it talks about how Peppa likes to jump in the mud, and everyone enjoys jumping in the mud!"

The children suddenly got excited!

"Wow, Brother Fang Ye, do you watch ’Peppa Pig’ too?"

Fang Ye smiled and said, "I watch it occasionally. Elephants roll in the mud or water, or they use their trunks to suck up the mud and spray it over themselves.

Their wrinkled skin has creases that are good for retaining water. After a mud bath, the mud sticking to their body doesn’t immediately fall off, allowing the water in the mud to slowly evaporate, which can have a long-lasting effect in cooling them down.

At the same time, the mud coating can prevent their skin from cracking, block ultraviolet rays, and protect against annoying insects like mosquitoes and ticks.

After a mud bath, elephants usually find a rock or tree to rub their ears and legs against to even out the mud."

"Oh~"

The tourists let out sounds of amazed admiration.

"I thought it was just for fun."

"Feels like it’s like we’re applying a face mask!"

"Interesting!"

Fang Ye said, "It’s not just practical, sometimes it really is just for fun, meeting their emotional needs.

Even after having dinner, you might still want a little snack, maybe some skewers for a late-night treat, right?

"Over where I live, there was an algal bloom before! The water surface was covered in green sludge like paint, and it stank terribly. It was really disgusting," another visitor commented.

"I never thought that algal blooms not only inconvenience human life but also have such a significant impact on animals." said another.

Liu Wei couldn’t help but think of the small farm in the zoo, where organic rice grew robustly!

The manure from the animals was fermented into organic fertilizer, nourishing the healthy growth of crops, and ducks, not pesticides, were used to control pests.

He suddenly gained a deeper understanding of the words "nature-friendly" described on the exhibit sign.

Actually, there are ways to live in harmony with nature.

Pingping was still playing in the mud pit, and at that moment, Bobo walked toward the mud pond as well.

She didn’t kneel down like Pingping. She suffered from lack of exercise over the long term which caused her joints to be stiff, making it uncomfortable to perform large knee-bending movements.

She lowered her head and prodded the edge with her trunk to ensure there were no trenches below before slowly stepping into the mud pond.

Cautiously, she took a couple more steps forward, standing in the mud pond, then sucked up a clump of mud-water with her trunk and sprayed it over her back.

Compared to the lively and rolling Pingping, her demeanor was much more composed!

After all, at over forty years old, she counted as a grandmother in the herd.

Of course, there were even older members in the group, the great-grandmothers, and the great-great-grandmothers.

Despite her composed demeanor, Bobo had her mouth wide open, her eyes curved into crescents, looking very happy, flapping her ears. It seemed that even her wrinkles had smoothed out quite a bit.

One could tell she was quite pleased with the new zoo having a mud pond.

It was as if she had worked hard in a factory for a lifetime and was finally retired, ready to enjoy life!

That must be the feeling.

Pingping seemed quite happy as well to have Bobo join her in the mud bath.

It’s better to be happy together than alone.

Her trunk curled and reached out toward Bobo as a gesture of welcome.