June 10, 2015
Zoo builds bear necessities Recipes
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Sensational Seafood on the Grill
Feature Section
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Golden Years
School Photo courtesy Kelly Ann Brown Kali, a 2.5 year-old, 850-pound male polar bear is McDonnell Polar Bear Point’s first inhabitant at the St. Louis Zoo.
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Robotics Dean’s List Award
McDonnell Polar Bear Point opens at St. Louis Zoo with new permanent house guest By Sara Hardin This summer marks the debut of the new-and-improved McDonnell Polar Bear Point at the St. Louis Zoo. The exhibit opened to the public starting Saturday, June 6, and visitors can now observe the polar bear like never before thanks to the innovation of the modernized habitat. The 40,000-square-foot, $16 million exhibit features a 50,000-gallon Polar Dive Pool with a glass viewing wall, allowing zoo-goers an exhilarating close-up look at the huge, swimming mammal from the safety of an arctic cave room. Polar Bear Point’s first inhabitant, a 2.5 year-old, 850-pound male polar bear named Kali, gets all of the attention to himself during the excitement of the exhibit’s opening. “It will be great fun to see Kali interact with guests through the split view window that offers views of him swimming in the deep pool and playing in the shallow pool,” said Steve Bircher, Saint Louis Zoo Curator of Mammals/Carnivores. With the new habitat more than doubling the space of the previous polar bear area, Bircher adds that the habitat can
accommodate up to five bears in the future. Until then, Kali can break in his new home in peace. “This wonderful habitat shows our commitment to protecting polar bears, which are declining in the wild and are highly vulnerable,” said Jeffrey P Bonner, Ph.D., Dana Brown President and Chief Executive Officer of the St. Louis Zoo. “By working to not only conserve polar bears in the wild but to offer a wonderful habitat for breeding and caring for bears, we can help save these iconic animals.” Kali’s arrival at the zoo came after he was orphaned in Alaska and turned over to U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS). After working with the Association of Zoo and Aquariums (AZA) Polar Bear Species Survival Plan (SSP), USFWS determined that St. Louis would be Kali’s permanent home. Kali arrived to St. Louis on May 5 and has been living comfortably in his new habitat, where a quarantine period allowed him to acclimate to his new home and diet. Along with the new Polar Bear Point are educational opportunities about the
bears and their role in the lives of Alaska Native People, a 2,651-square-foot Care Center that provides advanced care and management for marine mammals, including a polar maternity suite, and a See ZOO page 2
Over the Fence
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Politically correct aka “illusions”
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