IF YOU GOWhat: ‘It’s A Smash’ Where: Rosamond Gifford ZooWhen: Saturday, the main event at 11 a.m.How much: $4.50 with student ID, $6.50 without

This time last year, a lone pumpkin lay toppled over in the dirt – not an unusual sight for Syracuse in the fall. Of course, this particular pumpkin weighed more than 600 pounds and was being keenly watched by three giant elephants.

Eventually, one of the large mammals worked up the courage to check out the orange intruder in her pen. She prodded it with her trunk, nudged it with her head and finally smashed it open with her foot, sending giant pumpkin skin, innards and seeds flying.

This, and more vegetable destruction at the hands of animals, will be seen once again Saturday at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo at the second annual ‘It’s A Smash’ event.

The zoo, owned by Onondaga County, is where a giant pumpkin (this year it’s more than 850 pounds) will be placed in the elephant exhibit until it’s squashed. It’s a community-themed event held as a fall activity for Syracuse residents, as well as increase zoo attendance and visibility, said Jon Cooley, director of recreation and public programs for Onondaga County Parks.

‘Programs, (like) ‘It’s A Smash,’ we do throughout Onondaga Parks because it brings attention to the zoo,’ he said. ‘Special events like this are fun for the customers to go to, whether it be a grandparent, parent or child.’

The zoo is holding the event this Saturday. It’s an all-day activity that will be included in the zoo’s regular admission price.

The elephants will be given the giant pumpkin at 11:00 a.m. Last year, it took about five minutes for the animals to crush it, said Lorrell Walter, director of public relations for the Rosamond Gifford Zoo. When it was first placed in their pen, all the elephants used it as a toy – kicking, touching and wrapping their trunks around it. Finally, Kirina, the youngest of them, got her foot on top and stepped down hard, Walter said.

‘When that thing exploded, it sort of popped,’ Walter said. ‘It made this deep booming sound, and the kids that were watching just went wild. And the elephants tore the whole thing apart, ate it, played with it, kicked it apart. It was so much fun to watch.’

Last year was the zoo’s first ‘It’s A Smash’ event. It was planned at the last minute and held in the middle of the week, making it more for the media than the community, unlike this year’s event, Walter said.

The pumpkin will be donated by the Beaver Lake Nature Preserve, located in Baldwinsville. It was on display there for the month of October as part of the ‘An Enchanted Beaver Lake’ event, the Preserve’s annual Halloween celebration. The giant pumpkin was used as a photo opportunity until it was transported to the zoo.

A local farmer, who wished to remain anonymous, gave the pumpkin to Beaver Lake. It was then given to the zoo as a gift to the elephants, said Mary Slater, an employee for Friends of Beaver Lake, a group that helps to raise money for the preserve.

‘It has to be opened because he needs the seeds back so he can grow the pumpkin again next year,’ Slater said, referring to the farmer who donated the pumpkin.

Smaller pumpkins will be given to 22 other animals including a variety of birds, baboons, otters, and even lions, tigers and bears.

‘Last year, with the lions, one of the girls ended up hoarding them,’ Walter said. ‘She brought the pumpkins into a pile and sat on them. You never know what to expect.’

Published on November 1, 2007 at 12:00 pm