Perth Zoo: Tricia to be kept in ‘safe space’ until decision made on how best to honour elephant’s legacy

Perth Zoo is in talks with the WA Museum over the best way to honour Tricia, the late Asian elephant and animal ambassador which died on Wednesday aged 65.

Perth Zoo executive director Wendy Attenborough said discussions were underway to “ensure that Tricia can continue to be an extraordinary ambassador for her species just as she was in life”.

“They’ll be keeping her in a safe space for a little while and then we’ll have some really respectful conversations when the time is right about how to appropriately recognise her legacy,” she said on Thursday.

When quizzed on whether she supported the idea of a life-size statue of Tricia, Ms Attenborough said one of the oldest-known elephants in the world was “certainly worthy of a fantastic legacy and that’s what we’re all working to achieve”.

Tricia recently suffered a decline in her health – including sleep and mobility issues – and died surrounded by her zoo carers in her night quarters.

A special memorial walk will open at Perth Zoo on Sunday so West Australians can pay their respects.

There are also plans for a permanent memorial.

Fifty per cent of Sunday’s admission fees will go towards a conservation fund named in Tricia’s honour.

Perth Zoo has asked the community not to send flowers and instead help create a legacy for this “extraordinary animal”.

The Tricia Tribute to Conservation Fund has been established to support Perth Zoo’s conservation work and build an elephant guard post in Sumatra’s Bukit Tigapuluh ecosystem in her name.

The fund will help conservationists monitor and protect one of the last remaining wild herds of Sumatran elephants.

Meanwhile the zoo will search interstate and overseas for an open-range park that can house its two younger elephants, Permai and Putra Mas.

“We’re not going to rush it. We’re going to care for them in the immediate aftermath of Tricia’s passing,” Environment Minister Reece Whitby told reporters on Thursday.

“The prime concern will be their safety and welfare, so we want to get it right.”

With AAP