Kariba, an elephant aged over 40, has been moved from Pakawi Park in Belgium to the Pangea sanctuary in Portugal, animal welfare group Gaia said on Sunday.
Caught in the wild in Zimbabwe as a calf, Kariba was later kept in captivity in several European zoos. Since the death in 2022 of Jenny, her companion at Pakawi Park, she had been living alone.
The zoo then agreed to hand her over to animal welfare organisations, acknowledging that a solitary life no longer met her needs.
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The transfer, coordinated and funded by Gaia, involved a 37-hour journey covering 2,200 kilometres. It followed more than a year of preparation, including gradual training and veterinary monitoring.
Kariba will now live on an estate of more than 400 hectares in the Alentejo region, where she will receive specialist care for the rest of her life.
She will also gradually be introduced to Julie, another elephant formerly exploited in a circus.
Michel Vandenbosch, president of Gaia, said the move should set an example. He urged zoos to follow what he called this historic rescue and to offer retirement to wild animals rather than keeping them in captivity until they die.
He specifically called on Boudewijn Seapark in Bruges to do the same for its dolphins.
Vandenbosch also criticised zoos for regularly citing conservation to justify captivity, saying that nearly 80% of the species they keep are not threatened with extinction.
He said entire generations of animals are born, live and die in captivity without ever knowing freedom.
