Extraordinary ultrasound of George the baby elephant curled up inside his mother's womb

This amazing photograph shows an embryonic elephant in the womb - with its tiny trunk clearly visible.

The incredible image of George, Whipsnade Zoo's latest pachyderm arrival, was captured 19 months before he was born.

Staff used three-dimensional ultrasound scans and tiny cameras to film the pregnancy process from conception to birth.

There's the tiny trunk! Staff carried out an ultrasound scan of the elephant embryo at approximately 3 months into its 22-month pregnancy

Moments after the birth: The baby Asiatic Elephant George is seen here just minutes after his mum Karihma gave birth at Whipsnade zoo

Seen here at about three months into the 22-month pregnancy, the elephant embryo is unmistakeable.

Ultrasound scans are carried out throughout, much like with humans, to monitor the health and well-being of mum and baby.

A year and a half later George's amazing birth was filmed and viewers can witness the moment in ITV1's The Zoo at 8pm tomorrow night, Tuesday 16 November.  

Easy does it: Staff at the zoo clean the newborn baby elephant, which already weighs more than an adult male

Four days old and counting: Little George meets his older sister, Donna while mum Karishma stays close by. The little fellow looks a little unsure about things in his brand new world

George was 124 kilograms when he was born - which is more than a human adult - and now at six months old he weighs around 60 stone.

He is a boisterous member of the herd of Asian elephants at the Zoo in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, where he loves to play in the 7-acre paddock with his big sister Donna.
Zoo spokeswoman Rebecca Smith said: 'We have a team come over from Berlin to take ultrasound scans of all our pregnant elephants.

'It is normal procedure but the clarity of the images varies of course. But this is one of the clearest we have ever seen with the trunk so visible. It is unmistakeably an elephant!' 

Every birth of an elephant, including in zoos, is very important for species conservation because both African and Asian elephants are threatened by extinction.

Every inch a proud mother: Karishma, mother of 6-month-old George the elephant enjoys a mid morning snack

Six months old now...and 60 stone: George is a friendly elephant and loves his keeper, Rob Conachie, one of the devoted zoo staff who has become very close to the animals in his care

The birth itself drags on for two nights. During the first night labour pains come on the cow elephant and the calf goes to its final birth position.  

During the second night the actual birth is introduced with second stage contractions and goes on until the early morning hours.

ITV spokesperson Naomi Phillipson said: 'I'm not aware of an elephant birth being shown on prime time TV in such detail before.

 

More...

• Well that’s one way to break the ice... Polar bear comes face to face with filmmaker
• Stomping ground: Wild stallions square off in bloody fight for mating rights

'It's quite something and a big event for the zoo because it's not something that happens very often. Any birth is captivity is important - particularly for reasons of conservation.

'It's the first time Whipsnade have allowed cameras into the zoo for about ten years so we feel very privileged.' 

The series follows the emotionally intense, and at times heartbreaking experiences, of the devoted keepers who inevitably become very close to the animals in their care.

Over 25% of flowers face extinction – many before they are even discovered

Scientists say human activity could spell end for a quarter of all flowering plants, with huge impact on food chain

• Juliette Jowitt   The Guardian, 07.09.2010

The giant carnivorous plant, Nepenthes attenboroughii, is under threat of extinction - along with 25% of all others on earth. Photograph: Redfern Natural History/PA

More than one-in-four of all flowering plants are under threat of extinction according to the latest report to confirm the ongoing destruction of much of the natural world by human activity.

As a result, many of nature's most colourful specimens could be lost to the world before scientists even discover them, claims the research, published today in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

The results reflect similar global studies of other species groups by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, which estimates that one-in-five of all mammals, nearly one-in-three amphibians and one-in-eight birds are vulnerable to being wiped out completely. Later this year the results of a huge global analysis of all the world's estimated up to 400,000 plants by Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, is due to be published by the IUCN as part of its ongoing mission to assess the state of all life on Earth.

"[This year] marks the International Year of Biodiversity," said Stuart Pimm of Duke University in North Carolina, USA, one of the authors of the report. "The focus of this celebration has often been on the species we know of, along with discussions on the unprecedented challenge of conserving this biodiversity in the face of threats such as habitat loss. However, by asking just how many species we will lose before they are even discovered, our study has revealed a figure that is truly alarming."

They started with a study published in the journal Endangered Species Research in 2008, which estimated that one-in-five known species were vulnerable to extinction. 

"If we take the number of species that are currently known to be threatened, and add to that those that are yet to be discovered, we can estimate that between 27% and 33% of all flowering plants will be threatened with extinction," said David Roberts, one of the co-authors, of the Durrell Institute of Conservation and Ecology at the University of Kent.

The paper adds: "These estimates are based on immediate threat, and do not consider further development of destructive factors - including climate disruption." The paper's third, lead, author was Lucas Joppa of Microsoft Research in Cambridge.