Finding friends: Lonely elephant arrives at Los Angeles Zoo

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Zoo has a new elephant — a lonely pachyderm from Fresno.

The zoo says a 46-year-old Asian female named Shaunzi arrived Tuesday after being trucked 215 miles from the Fresno Chaffee Zoo in a special crate.

Shaunzi was born in Thailand and spent much of her youth in a circus before arriving in Fresno with another elephant named Kara. The two females were constant companions until Kara died earlier this month.

The Fresno zoo didn’t want Shaunzi to be alone and asked the Los Angeles Zoo to give her a home.

The zoo says Shaunzi will be quarantined in the Elephants of Asia exhibit for a month so she can slowly become acquainted with the three current residents: Billy, Tina and Jewel.