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Circus Elephants Enjoy A Smashing Thanksgiving Meal

News Channel 8 photo by PETER MASA

The elephants ate bread, apples, bananas, ears of corn, cantaloupes, and watermelons, which they crush with their feet first and then eat.

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By NATALIE SHEPHERD

nshepherd@wfla.com

Published: November 27, 2008

Eleven female Asian elephants from the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus celebrated Thanksgiving this morning at the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa with a feast of apples, carrots, lettuce, bananas, melons and bread.

"They actually love the melons the best," circus spokeswoman Melinda Hartline said. "They'll grab them with their trunks and they'll stomp on them."

Hartline says all of the circus families are celebrating the holiday, and they couldn't leave out the performing elephants. The pachyderms put on quite a show, smashing watermelons into pieces and eating them with their trunks. Hartline says the display is a way to say thank you to circus members. The circus teamed up with Metropolitan Ministries and collected 6,500 pounds of food for needy families this week.

Natalie Shepherd can be reached at (813) 225-2703.

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