Pinnawala

Pinnawala is a stunning village on the banks of a river close to Kegalle, a town situated halfway between Kandy, Sri Lanka’s cultural capital, and Colombo, its commercial city. The largest elephant herd kept in captivity is taken care of by the only elephant orphanage in the world, the picturesque village. Numerous newborn elephants are housed there, along with a blind and a disabled elephant. The biggest member of the Asiatic elephant genus is the Sri Lankan species Elephas Maximus Maximus, which has white spots on its ears, face, trunk, and belly, of all the Asiatic elephants, they are the darkest. On a vacation to Sri Lanka, seeing this sizable herd of these behemoths is a fantastic experience. The 55th baby elephant to be born at the Elephant Orphanage of Pinnawala in its 40 years of operation occurred in February 2011. With the most recent addition, the total stood at 86.

The orphanage was established in the Wilpattu National Park in 1972 and moved to a 10-hectare coconut farm on the banks of the Mahaoya River in 1976. The herd visits the river twice daily, and seeing the herd splashing around in the water is considered a “must see” by tourists. In 1982, the Orphanage began its breeding program. Two males and three females were the original breeding pair. Three calves were born at intervals of five and four years by the male and female couple known as Vijay and Kumari. Additionally, the Orphanage makes paper from elephant dung. The method is both commercially and industrially viable. The “Pachyderm” label is applied to the elephant dung paper. As part of a holiday in Sri Lanka, it gives the villagers, who are passionate about conservation, a source of revenue that is totally linked with the elephant orphanage, the hub of a vibrant village economy.