First African elephant born in the Western Hemisphere was Knoxville's Little Diamond

Silas Sloan, Knoxville News Sentinel
·1 min read
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Zoo Knoxville is home to some incredible animals from around the world, including some massive elephants. It was also the home of Little Diamond, the first African elephant born in captivity in the Western Hemisphere.

Little Diamond was born in March 1978 and weighed 200 pounds at birth. His mother, Toto, was an African elephant on loan from the Bronx Zoo in New York City.

Little Diamond's father, Diamond, was believed to be the largest African elephant in the U.S. In 1968, the zoo had to increase the height of the fence since Diamond had grown so much.

Little Diamond's half-sibling, Hilary, was born just two months later in May and was the second African Eeephant born in captivity in the Western Hemisphere.

A story in the Knoxville News Sentinel on April 8, 1978 depicts the first day Little Diamond comes outside of his barn after his birth on March 2. Artist Ralph McDonald was commissioned to paid the young elephant's portrait.
A story in the Knoxville News Sentinel on April 8, 1978 depicts the first day Little Diamond comes outside of his barn after his birth on March 2. Artist Ralph McDonald was commissioned to paid the young elephant's portrait.

In 1995, Little Diamond and Toto were moved to the North Carolina Zoo on a long-term breeding loan.

Little Diamond died in 2014 at the North Carolina Zoo, at the age of 36.

Silas Sloan is the growth and development reporter. Email silas.sloan@knoxnews.com. Twitter @silasloan. Instagram @knox.growth.

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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: First African elephant born in the Western Hemisphere was in Knoxville