2nd elephant dies at Lincoln Park Zoo

CHICAGO, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- Peaches the elephant, the oldest captive pachyderm in North America, died at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo, the second elephant death in three months.

Zoo officials found Peaches collapsed in her pen of an unknown cause and veterinarians euthanized the 55-year-old female late Monday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Lincoln Park Zoo officials said Peaches likely died "from complications due to old age" and rejected claims by animal rights activists that lack of exercise space and the cold contributed to the African elephant's death.

Peaches and two other elephants, Wankie and Tatima, came to Chicago from the San Diego Wild Animal Park in spring 2003. Tatima died in October of suspected tuberculosis, which officials said is not suspected in Peaches' death.

The zoo was considering whether to move Wankie elsewhere or bring in another elephant to keep the 36-year-old company, the newspaper said.