Posts tagged "berlin zoo"

At the Berlin Zoo, Kathi the hippo gave birth to a bouncing baby calf. We don't want to call her overprotective, per se, but Kathi literally pushes away her other kids, according to the zoologist.

Actually, yes, we will call her overprotective. She won't even let the baby's pop look at him. Although heaven knows he'll be paying for therapy bills for years to come.

At the tender age of 4, Knut, the cutest, most famous polar bear in the history of the world, collapsed and died suddenly inside his enclosure at the Berlin Zoo on Saturday.

According to the AP, Knut had been strolling around the space he shared with three other bears on Saturday when he reportedly "went into the water, had a short spasm and died."

Zoo-goers were shocked and confused to see the beloved bear laying motionless. Zoo staff fenced off the enclosure when they realized what had happened.

"All the zookeepers who put up the fences were so very sad," visitor Camilla Verde told the AP. "One of them said, 'He was our baby.' "

Our old friend Knut, the nearly 4-year-old male polar bear at the Berlin Zoo, has a worldwide following and has even graced the cover of "Vanity Fair," But it isn't helping him with the ladies.

"The Early Show" reports that zookeepers have brought Knut together with several females (after a brief period of puppy love with temporary roommate, Giovanna, who moved out in August) hoping there will be a love connection. But so far, neither of the two likely females have taken to the bear. In fact, the females have been aggressively bullying the poor guy. According to the "The Early Show," the zookeepers believe that once Knut learns to stand up for himself, nature will take its course.

If it were up to animal rights group, PETA, the world's most famous and beloved polar bear, Knut at the Berlin Zoo, would be castrated.

"Knut is sharing his quarters with another polar bear named Giovanna, who is his cousin," states PETA on its Web site, adding that Knut and Giovanna (whose nickname is Gianna) share the same grandfather. To avoid any possibility that the pair will mate and produce inbred offspring, PETA's Germany chapter is demanding that Knut be castrated.

"If Knut and Giovanna were to have any offspring, it could threaten the genetic diversity of Germany's polar bear population, and the new bears could be susceptible to a condition known as 'incest depression,'" says PETA, citing expert Frank Albrecht.

For all his celebrity -- he was photographed for Vanity Fair by Annie Leibovitz, for example -- Knut has had a tough life. First, his mother -- a retired circus animal, according to People -- rejected Knut and his twin brother after giving birth in December 2006. Then Knut's twin brother died of a fungal infection. Knut was left alone to be hand-raised by humans. He managed to form an attachment to his devoted trainer, Thomas Dörflein, only to have Dörflein suddenly die in 2008.

Knut the polar bear sure is growing up fast! Our fuzzy little guy had his first date earlier this week with Gianna, a three-year-old female polar bear on loan from the Munich Zoo, reports Huffington Post.

This is the first bear Knut has ever had contact with, and boy, did they ever make contact -- Gianna smacked Knut, reports People Pets. According to the site, Knut was (understandably) stunned to see another bear in his enclosure, and zookeeper Heiner Klos is quoted as saying, "It was as we expected it to be. Knut was very shy and the Munich bear was clearly the one wearing the dirndl."

(Is anyone else picturing a polar bear in a dirndl now? Or is that just us?)

While Gianna might be playing hard to get for now, plenty of hope is being held out that the two will, eventually, move beyond a platonic relationship and mate. Both bears have difficult backgrounds, according to People Pets. Knut, as you likely know, was rejected by his mother and hand-raised by Thomas Dörflein, who died suddenly last year. Knut has been lonely ever since. Gianna, meanwhile, had to be moved from an enclosure with a previous suitor after she developed an intense dislike for him.