Meet
Mara

Mara, an African elephant born in the wild around 1980, tragically lost her mother and family when they were killed in a government culling operation, which she surely witnessed. At just two years old, she was captured and sent to the Catskill Game Farm in New York, then sold to a European animal dealer who owned the Happy Hollow Zoo in San Jose, California, where he sent her. As the zoo’s lone elephant, Mara was forced to entertain visitors during the day; behind the scenes she was immobilized in chains and trained with a bullhook.

When the zoo planned to sell Mara to a Mexican circus, a group called Friends of Mara intervened. With help from a generous mother and daughter (who continue to support Mara and PAWS to this day), the group purchased her and relocated Mara to Arthur Jones’ 600-acre Florida estate, where she lived with 80 other imported elephant orphans.

When Jones eventually began selling off the elephants, Mara was once again at risk of being sent to a circus. Hearing of her plight, PAWS’ co-founders Ed Stewart and the late Pat Derby rescued Mara in January 1990. She shared a habitat with 71, another rescued elephant, until 71’s passing in 2008.

Today, Mara is known for her playful spirit, athleticism, high energy, and love of stripping large, leafy branches from trees. She roams the rolling hills of ARK 2000 with her companion, Thika, stopping to take a dust bath, forage on fresh vegetation, or take a nap in the sun.