Orphaned grizzlies get back into public space
Source: Agencies |
December 19, 2010, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
LOOKING healthier but still skittish from their wild upbringing, three orphaned grizzly bears that took part in a fatal campground rampage outside Yellowstone National Park made their public debut on Friday at a Montana zoo.
A dozen preschoolers watched as the young bears - nicknamed Dolly, Loulou and Koda - nosed around a two-acre outdoor compound surrounded by high-voltage electric fencing.
Dolly and Loulou eventually inched close enough to get a good look at the children. But Koda, described by his ZooMontana keepers as "the reticent one," kept his distance, ducking into the heated enclosure whenever someone made a sudden move.
US wildlife officials euthanized the bears' mother after she led them on a late-night attack that left a Michigan man dead and two others injured. Although the cubs took part in the July attack near Cooke City - about 200 kilometers from the zoo -- officials said they were only following their mother's lead.
The bears have shown themselves to be little different from other wild creatures that end up in confinement, zoo representatives said.
The bears, which turn two years old this winter, will spend the next several weeks adjusting to their surroundings before they are allowed out during ZooMontana's regular hours, said senior zookeeper Krystal Whetham.
A dozen preschoolers watched as the young bears - nicknamed Dolly, Loulou and Koda - nosed around a two-acre outdoor compound surrounded by high-voltage electric fencing.
Dolly and Loulou eventually inched close enough to get a good look at the children. But Koda, described by his ZooMontana keepers as "the reticent one," kept his distance, ducking into the heated enclosure whenever someone made a sudden move.
US wildlife officials euthanized the bears' mother after she led them on a late-night attack that left a Michigan man dead and two others injured. Although the cubs took part in the July attack near Cooke City - about 200 kilometers from the zoo -- officials said they were only following their mother's lead.
The bears have shown themselves to be little different from other wild creatures that end up in confinement, zoo representatives said.
The bears, which turn two years old this winter, will spend the next several weeks adjusting to their surroundings before they are allowed out during ZooMontana's regular hours, said senior zookeeper Krystal Whetham.
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
