First published September 19, 2019.
In late summer 2019 the Danish government agreed to buy the country's last four performing circus elephants so they could retire instead of touring. The price was 11 million kroner, about $1.6 million at the time, according to the Associated Press. The elephants, Ramboline, Lara, Djunga and Jenny, eventually moved in May 2020 to a large purpose-built enclosure at Knuthenborg Safari Park on the island of Lolland.
The deal was linked to a planned national ban on wild animals in travelling circuses. Rather than leave the owners with animals they could no longer use, the state bought them out and took responsibility for their welfare. Here is how it happened, where the elephants ended up, and how Denmark's move fits into a wider shift across Europe and the United States.
Who the four elephants were
Three of the elephants belonged to Circus Arena, one of Denmark's best-known touring circuses. The fourth, Ramboline, came from Cirkus Trapez. Before their move, all four were kept together at Circus Arena's winter quarters in Slagelse, Eurogroup for Animals reported.
Some English-language reports spelled one name “Djungla”; the Associated Press and the World Economic Forum used Djunga. Circus Arena's manager, Benny Berdino, told the AP he was “sad to have to say goodbye” but glad the elephants would get a good retirement.
Why Denmark paid instead of simply banning
Food and Fisheries Minister Mogens Jensen said the government expected a ban on wild animals in circuses later in 2019. Elephants were the most complicated case. They can live for decades, need a great deal of space and food, and cannot be released into the wild after a lifetime in human care. A ban alone would have left the circuses holding animals they could no longer use, and no clear plan for their future.
By buying them, the state took on that responsibility directly. At first the ministry had no fixed destination. It invited offers from places that could take the elephants quickly and guarantee proper welfare, while Animal Protection Denmark (Dyrenes Beskyttelse) oversaw their care in the meantime.
Their new home at Knuthenborg Safari Park
In autumn 2019 it was decided that Knuthenborg Safari Park, in south-east Denmark, would take the elephants. The park built a savannah-style enclosure covering about 140,000 square metres, designed in collaboration with Dyrenes Beskyttelse, together with an elephant house. The four arrived by truck in May 2020.
The aim, as the park described it, was to let them simply live as elephants: choosing whether to be inside or out, and spending their days without training or performances. Visitors can see them, but the setting is very different from a circus ring or a travel trailer.
Denmark in a wider wave of circus bans
Denmark was not acting alone. The World Economic Forum noted that Bolivia banned all animals in circuses in 2009, and that Greece and Cyprus had outlawed wild animals such as elephants, lions and bears in shows.
- England: the Wild Animals in Circuses Act 2019 received Royal Assent on 24 July 2019 and took effect on 20 January 2020, banning wild animals from travelling circuses.
- United States: New Jersey became the first state to outlaw wild animal acts in travelling shows in late 2018, and Hawaii followed soon after. A patchwork of city and county rules existed elsewhere.
- Germany: Circus Roncalli, which had phased out live animal acts years earlier, made headlines in 2019 for using 3D holograms of animals such as horses and elephants.
These were the rules as they stood in 2019 and 2020. Laws have kept changing since, so anyone researching the current situation in a particular country should check up-to-date official sources.
Why elephants were at the centre of the debate
Of all circus animals, elephants have drawn the most concern. They are large, intelligent and highly social, and in the wild they walk long distances each day. Touring life means long periods in transport and small enclosures. Campaign groups such as PETA, as summarised by the WEF, have pointed to confinement during travel and to training methods involving whips, muzzles or electric prods.
Public opinion has moved too. The WEF cited US survey data in which more than two-thirds of respondents expressed some concern about how circus animals are treated. Faced with falling audiences for animal acts and rising costs, many circuses have shifted to human performers, acrobatics and technology.
Common misunderstandings
- They were not released into the wild. Elephants raised in captivity lack the skills and herd support to survive on their own. Retirement here means managed care in a much larger space.
- The money was not a fine or a seizure. It was a negotiated purchase from the circuses.
- The US dates are often mixed up. New Jersey's law dates from late 2018, not late 2019.
What the story shows
Banning a practice is one step; taking care of the animals left behind is another. Denmark's decision recognised that the elephants had no say in how they had lived, and that the state had a duty to see them through the transition. For four animals that had spent their lives on the road, the result was a quieter final chapter on open ground.
Sources: AP via PBS NewsHour (September 2, 2019); World Economic Forum (September 2019); Eurogroup for Animals (May 2020); Knuthenborg Safari Park; Wikipedia: Wild Animals in Circuses Act 2019.
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