He works for park district but elephants are in his blood

Despite their mammoth size of three tons or more, elephants are agile and speedy as well as smart.

We have this on authority of Brian McKenna, superintendent of parks for the Rolling Meadows Park District, who worked with elephants years ago at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo.

And maybe that's why the pachyderms are a draw at the Kelly Miller Circus, which will perform in Rolling Meadows Friday and Saturday, Sept. 18 and 19.

Here are some elephantine facts you might not know:

• When McKenna cared for elephants in the 1990s, zookeepers' commands elicited moves that could be incorporated into circus performances. For example, an elephant would be instructed to lift or present each foot and maybe step on a platform. This allowed the keeper to file hoofs, scrub the soft grooves on the feet and remove any stones lodged there. As you might imagine, feet that carry around this much weight are a vulnerable part of the mega-vertebrate body.

• Asian elephants (like you see in the circus) are more laid back and easy going than their usually larger African cousins.

•McKenna thinks it was an honor to work with these animals, but he was trained to never treat them as pets or anthropomorphize them, which means giving them human characteristics. Elephants don't get employee handbooks, he said.

"There are no rules or regulations telling them what they can do and when they can do it."

• Still, he knows elephants are passionate toward other members of the herd. The three females he worked with at Lincoln Park - two Asians and an African - did not like to be separated from each other. "When they got back together they would touch trunks and rub heads as if to reassure each other that life is OK. It's touching when you see them."

• One of the elephants - called the matriarch - was the boss, and zookeepers tried to emulate her attitude when working with the elephants. Lincoln Park had an older, larger Asian elephant who was in charge. But when she was replaced by a younger female, the African stepped up to the lead role. "When the group dynamic changes they are trying to work out their give and take, and it's a learning curve that takes quite some time," said McKenna.

• Yes, they are intelligent. When the elephants watched keepers attach tethers to their legs, they figured out how to use their trunks to unscrew the bolts.

• Circus and zoo animals can be ambassadors for others in the wild, inspiring people who might never travel to their homelands to support them and work to help them survive and thrive, he said.

"I miss working with animals," said McKenna, who has been with the park district for five years after two stints with the Lincoln Park zoo. "Animals are pretty easy to figure out - they want what they want."

<p class="factboxheadblack">If you go</p> <p class="News">Benefits Palatine Township Elementary District 15 Educational Foundation and the Rolling Meadows Park District Foundation.</p> <p class="News">• What: Kelly Miller Circus</p> <p class="News">• Where: Park district Community Center grounds, 3705 Pheasant Drive, Rolling Meadows.</p> <p class="News">• When: Shows are 4:30 & 7:30 p.m. Sept. 18; 2 & 5:30 p.m. Sept. 19.</p> <p class="News">• Tickets: $12 at Community Center; box office open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday.</p> <p class="News">• Etc.: The big top goes up at 9 a.m. today, Friday. All are invited to watch free.</p>