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ROYAL OAK, Mich., April 13, 2009 – The Detroit Zoo has welcomed a 9-year-old, 900-pound male polar bear from the Lincoln Park Zoo as a suitor for one of its females. Lee arrived with a breeding recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan (SSP) program, a cooperative management plan to ensure genetically healthy, diverse and self-sustaining populations of threatened and endangered species.
Zookeepers hope to take advantage of the current polar bear breeding season to mate Lee with 24-year-old Bärle (pronounced bear’ la) or 4-year-old Talini, though not in the same season. If breeding is successful, the Zoo could welcome a cub next winter.
“Growing concern over climate change and its effects on the inhabitants of the fragile arctic ecosystem underscore the importance of polar bear conservation programs such as the SSP. The polar bears at the Detroit Zoo are great ambassadors to over a million people each year who hopefully leave here with a greater understanding of the issues facing polar bears and a greater connection to their plight,” said Director of Conservation and Animal Welfare Scott Carter.
Polar bears in the wild are listed as “vulnerable” on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species and were recently upgraded to “threatened” status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.
In addition to Bärle and Talini, Lee joins 12-year-old brothers Neil and Buzz at the Arctic Ring of Life, North America’s largest polar bear exhibit. A unique feature of the award-winning habitat is the Frederick and Barbara Erb Polar Passage, where visitors walk through a 70-foot-long clear tunnel as polar bears and seals swim above and around them. The habitat was named the second-best zoo exhibit in the country by The Intrepid Traveler’s guide to “America’s Best Zoos”.
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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