Luna the polar bear cub comes face-to-face with the camera at his first solo photo shoot
Stretched out and yawning with her adorable paws in the air, it seems little Luna would like nothing better than having her tummy tickled. Or perhaps she’s just plain tired – after all, she was in the middle of her very first photoshoot. Now three months old, the polar bear cub is the newest star of Buffalo Zoo in New York state, where she was born weighing just 1lb 8oz last November to mother, Anana, and father, Nanuq. She has been hand-reared ever since by zoo staff, and now weighs 23lb. The cub was nicknamed Luna because she was born the night of a full moon. Her official name will be decided through a competition.
The Buffalo Zoo is one of two zoos in North America to have a polar bear birth this year. In preparation, the zoo has spent the last two years raising over $4 million of the $8 million needed to build a new entrance and proposed new exhibit for Luna and her family.
On Friday the fluffy debutante, her fur like soft, snow-white dawn, was placed in a makeshift enclosure before the press, where she purred in apparent content after being bottle-fed by veterinary technician Alice Rochauer. Though the young bear has been nicknamed Luna, the zoo will hold a naming contest on its Facebook page. There will also be a camera set allowing online users to follow baby Luna as she grows.
The youngster's first public appearance at the zoo last week marked the launch of 'Our Bears Belong in Buffalo' fundraising campaign. Zoo President Donna Fernandez told reporters who turned out for the event that the goal is to raise $4million in order to build the cub a new home as part of the planned Arctic Edge exhibit. 'We're hoping to keep her here, but that can only happen if we complete the campaign on time,' she said. The 1.5 acre display will feature two pools of waters with viewing windows that will allow the public to watch the bears at play. There will also be separate viewing areas for bald eagles, waterfowl, arctic wolves and Canadian lynx. The Buffalo News reported that so far, the zoo has raised 80 per cent of the total sum needed for the exhibit, which amounts to about $14.2million. The rest of the money will go towards building a new entrance.
The zoo's outdated, century-old polar bear pen no longer met national husbandry standards, forcing the administration to relocate the three-month-old cub's parents until the new exhibit's planned 2015 opening. The cub was born on November 27, weighing 1.5lbs. She now clocks in at 23lbs. Her mother, Anana, was born in captivity, while her father, Nanuq, was rescued from the wild after being orphaned in Alaska, WIVB reported. She is only one of three polar bears born in captivity last year in the U.S. Only 31 domestic menageries can boast having a polar bear in their collection.
Sun Mar 10, 2013 9:05 am
