Ahhh… polar bears. If you are lucky enough to catch the polar bears in the tunnel, you will have a hard time leaving. Here is some information about our bears, how we work with them, and what you can do to help polar bears:
House Name: Storm
Naming: After a school-wide naming contest was held at Duke of Marlborough School in Churchill, the chosen name was submitted by a grade three student, because it’s the name of their school mascot and sports team logo.
Sex: Male
Estimated Birthdate: December 2010 (+/- 1 or 2 months) in the wild
Identifying Characteristic: Storm has a long nose that is very evident in profile and a small round scar on the left side of his muzzle. He is our largest bear.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- His experience in the wild has made him a good teacher for other polar bears. Most of the bears that have come through the LIPBCC (Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre) are either orphans or captive born, so Storm has acted as a teacher and has passed on lessons to these bears that did not have as much time to learn from their mothers. Basically, he has taught them how to “speak bear.”
House Name: Aurora
Naming: The name was chosen by grade two students after a school-wide naming contest was held at Churchill’s Duke of Marlborough School. The name was chosen because Churchill has a lot of Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), especially in February.
Sex: Female
Estimated Birthdate: November 2012 (+/- 1 months) in the wild
Identifying Characteristic: Aurora and Kaska are similar in size but Aurora can be distinguished by a small circular dark patch of hair on her neck just above her shoulders and another one on her left paw.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- Aurora came to Assiniboine Park Zoo with pre-existing dental issues. She has had two dental surgeries and our keepers and veterinary staff routinely check Aurora’s teeth.
House Name: Kaska
Naming: Her name is a shortened form of the name of an important area in Manitoba where polar bear denning occurs, the Kaskatamagan Wildlife Management Area. This area lies within the traditional territory of Shamattawa First Nation, and within the York Factory First Nation Resource Management Area.
Sex: Female
Estimated Birthdate: December 2012 (+/- 1 months) in the wild
Identifying Characteristic: She has a white tag in her right ear.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- Kaska was the first bear at Assiniboine Park Zoo ever seen sipping air bubbles around one of the underwater windows in the Sea Ice Passage exhibit in order to stay under longer. She has had underwater dives lasting over 2 minutes when using these air pockets. Keepers and researchers wonder if this is a learned behaviour at the zoo or something wild bears would do under the ice when stalking seals.
House Name: Blizzard
Naming: Name suggestions for the brother-sister polar bear duo (Blizzard & Star) were provided by the northern schools of Gillam School, George Saunders Memorial School, and Fox Lake School. The winning names were selected through an online poll.
Sex: Male
Estimated Birthdate: December 2013 (+/- 1 months) in the wild. His twin sister is Star.
Identifying Characteristic: Blizzard is quite stout compared to the other bears and stands out as being heavier, having a broader head and wider set eyes.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- He loves to play in the water and encourage the others to join him. He does tend to hog all the toys, and is still learning how to share. Blizzard is a very interactive bear that is creative and loves to play with his zoo keepers. He is very smart and keeps his trainers on their toes, they often wonder who is training whom.
House Name: Star
Naming: Name suggestions for the brother-sister polar bear duo (Blizzard & Star) were provided by the northern schools of Gillam School, George Saunders Memorial School, and Fox Lake School. The winning names were selected through an online poll.
Sex: Female
Estimated Birthdate: December 2013 (+/- 1 months) in the wild. Her twin brother is Blizzard
Identifying Characteristic: She has large ears for her size; this is most evident when she is wet from playing in the pool.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- She is very gentle in play with a sweet demeanour, and is sensitive to man-made noises. She loves to play with her enrichment toys; anything she can pounce on or break. She especially enjoys when her toys are hung up and can swing around. She and Blizzard love to play tug-o-war.
House Name: York
Naming: The Zoo invited the community to help name the cubs through a Donate to Vote campaign that raised over $18,000 to support the Polar Bear Rescue Team. The name York is in recognition of the York Factory First Nation, which has traditional lands that include important polar bear denning habitats.
Sex: Male
Estimated Birthdate: December 2014 (+/- 1 months) in the wild. Twin brother was Eli.
Identifying Characteristic: His nose is short and wide, making his head have more of a round shape.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- York enjoys icy snacks filled with fish or vegetables and always eager for food of any kind. He is very playful and enjoys interacting with his keepers and playing in the pool with his toys.
House Name: Nanuq
Naming: Names for Nanuq were submitted by children and staff at the Churchill Children’s Centre. The list was then narrowed down by representatives from the Zoo to two choices. An online poll receiving close to 4,000 votes resulted in the chosen name Nanuq, the Inuit word for polar bear.
Sex: Female
Estimated Birthdate: December 2015 (+/- 1 months) in the wild
Identifying Characteristic: Typically growing bears have few characteristic to identify them to people. Currently keepers and visitors can identify her because she is larger than her playmate, Siku.
Zoo Fun Fact:
- Nanuq tends to be calm and quiet. She had a very easy and successful transition to the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre.
House Name: Siku
Naming: Names for Siku were submitted by Assiniboine Park Conservancy staff. The list was then narrowed down to two choices. An online poll receiving close to 4,000 votes resulted in the chosen name Siku, the Inuit word for ice.
Sex: Male
Estimated Birthdate: December, 2015 (+/- 1 months) in the wild
Identifying Characteristic: Typically growing bears have few characteristic to identify them to people. Currently keepers and visitors can identify him because he is smaller than his playmate, Nanuq.
Zoo Fun Facts:
- At the time of his arrival, Siku was approximately one year old and was the lightest orphan the Centre has received. Siku was very vocal upon his arrival. Being paired with Nanuq was very beneficial for him as it helped to calm him down.
House Name: Juno
Naming: She was named by the Canadian Army in honour of her Remembrance Day Birthday and to pay tribute to the historic Canadian landings on Juno Beach along the Normandy Coast during WWII.
Sex: Female
Birthdate: Juno was born at the Toronto Zoo on November 11, 2015 and came to Winnipeg in March 2017.
Identifying Characteristic: Typically growing bears have few characteristic to identify them to people. Currently keepers and visitors can identify her because she is larger than her playmates, Nanuq & Siku.
Zoo Fun Facts:
- Juno will be staying at Assiniboine Park Zoo for a period of time which will allow her to learn bear socialization skills from other bears her age, Nanuq and Siku.
Positive Reinforcement Training
Animal training has a profound impact on our animals’ physical, emotional and mental welfare. The vast majority of behaviours we train are used to aid animal health efforts. We train our animals to stand on a scale to be weighed, voluntarily accept injections, give blood and offer body parts for keepers and vets to examine. Many animals voluntarily enter a crate to be transported to the animal hospital, eliminating the need to chase and capture them. This not only makes the whole experience more enjoyable for the animal, but it helps the vet get a clear view of the animal’s health by providing normal readings rather than the elevated heart rate, temperature and stress hormones they find in animals that had to be netted or chased. The benefits of animal training go much further than its effects on physical health. Training is an amazing way of exercising an animal’s mind. Essentially, when an animal is taught a new behaviour, it is solving a puzzle. For example, which behaviours will earn me a treat? Solving problems to find food is a natural behaviour and an important part of life for most animals. For an animal and trainer that know each other well, the animal is helping to solve the puzzle through subtle communication from the trainer. In a process called shaping, the trainer will reward behaviours that look more and more like the desired behaviour. Through the process, the animal tries new things as if to say, “Is this what you want? How about this?” and is answered by the trainer’s patient waiting or quick reward. Together, they play a game of hot and cold until the right behaviour is reached. At this moment, it is not uncommon to find both trainer and animal elated, each seeming to think, “We did it!” This moment of triumph keeps the animals coming back for more and it seems to give the animal as much joy as the trainer.
Conservation
Remember, climate change is the number one threat to polar bear habitat. We need to help polar bears by caring for the environment and by reducing our carbon footprint. Turning off electronic devices, such as televisions and computers, when they are not in use will help to conserve electricity which can reduce carbon emissions. You can also reduce your carbon emissions by adjusting your thermostat. In the winter, turn it down by 2 degrees and put on a sweater; in the summer, turn it up by 2 degrees.
Congratulations to Morea1821 and cowscropsandkids on the FTF! And to rekal, GeoNurseJF, Edigerz and Jaremian on the STF!