Cleveland zoo elephants return to overhauled home

CLEVELAND (AP) — Three residents of Cleveland’s zoo are home after being displaced by a two-year extreme makeover, elephant edition.

The Cleveland Metroparks Zoo said its three African elephants returned late today from the Columbus Zoo. They’d been staying there since 2008 while their exhibit area underwent a major overhaul.

Cleveland zoo officials say elephants Moshi, Martika and Jo won’t go back on display until their new African Elephant Crossing opens May 5. Zoo Director Steve Taylor says in a statement that the animals and their keepers will have plenty of time to get accustomed to their new and very different surroundings.

The new space gives the elephants a mix of habitats within four times more area than their old Pachyderm Building.