During a meeting of the Mykolaiv City Council, the director of the local zoo, Volodymyr Topchyi, jokingly explained why both elephants kept at the facility are male.
The amusing exchange took place during an online council meeting. The zoo director was unable to turn on his camera, so the mayor decided to check whether it was really him attending the meeting rather than another person or an artificial intelligence system.
Topchyi was first asked to name the elephant without a tusk. After answering correctly, he was asked another question: why both elephants at Mykolaiv Zoo are male.
“We follow European traditions. The Dutch way,” the zoo director joked.
After that, the participants agreed that the director’s identity had been successfully confirmed.
The humorous exchange occurred during a discussion of the financial situation at Mykolaiv’s municipal cultural institutions. During the meeting, officials also reported that the city budget lacked sufficient funds to pay the salaries of employees at these institutions.
