ROYAL OAK, Mich., May 1, 2009 – The Detroit Zoo is planning some “bear-y” special activities for kids May 9 through May 17, 2009, in celebration of Bear Awareness Week.  The festivities will include a Kids Zone, storytelling, zookeeper talks, bear enrichment, teddy bear repair and parades.  All activities are free with regular Zoo admission.

The Kids Zone will feature a bear den to explore, bear toys and puzzle feeders to play with and bear artifacts to smell and touch.  Zookeeper talks and enrichment activities will be held at the various bear habitats at 11 a.m., 2 p.m. and 4 p.m. each day.  Bear fact handouts and magnets will be distributed while supplies last.

On Saturday, May 9, and Sunday, May 10, a teddy bear “hospital” will be set up at the Pierson Lake picnic site where worn-out and well-loved teddy bears in need of special attention will be mended for free by Zoo volunteers.  Kids are invited to dress up their teddy bears and join the Teddy Bear Parade both days beginning at 1 p.m.

The Detroit Zoo is home to 12 bears of four species, including five polar bears, four grizzly bears, two black bears and a brown bear. 

The Detroit Zoological Society is a non-profit organization that operates the Detroit Zoo and Belle Isle Nature Zoo.  Situated on 125 acres of naturalistic exhibits, the Detroit Zoo is located at the intersection of Ten Mile Road and Woodward Avenue, just off I-696, in Royal Oak.  The Detroit Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. April through October (open at 9 a.m. May 1 through Labor Day) – with extended hours until 8 p.m. Wednesdays during July and August – and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November through March.  Admission is $11 for adults 15 to 61, $9 for senior citizens 62 and older, and $7 for children ages 2 to 14; children under 2 are free.  For more information, call (248) 541-5717 or visit www.detroitzoo.org.  The Belle Isle Nature Zoo is open daily 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. year-round and provides educational programming with interpretive staff support from the Huron-Clinton Metroparks.  Admission is free.  For more information, call (313) 852-4056. 
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