Polar Bear Leaving Vilas Zoo
Nanuq Arrived In Madison In 1988
Updated: 10:57 am CST February 14, 2009
MADISON, Wis. -- Henry Vilas Zoo officials said that a beloved polar bear at the zoo is leaving.
VIDEO: Watch The ReportNanuq, the zoo's 1,000-pound male polar bear, is being sent to a zoo on the east coast to breed.The bear captured many hearts back in the 1980s, when he and his twin arrived as small cubs. Now, much to the chagrin of his fans, Nanuq is leaving Madison, his longtime female companion Mishka and the place he's called home for more than 20 years."It's sad. He's always the one that's in the water and swimming and it's really fun to see him," said Christine Gold, who said her family loves watching the polar bears.But Henry Vilas Zoo officials said Nanuq must go to a zoo in Buffalo, N.Y., to mate with a female as part of a nationwide captive breeding program.At the Henry Vilas Zoo, there is no room for Mishka to raise a cub, so she's on birth control while her male friend gets ready to head east."There's a lot of science that goes into this and a lot of planning and this was his time, so we hope he does well," said Jim Hubing, director of the Henry Vilas Zoo.Nanuq was first welcomed to Madison in 1988 as a cub along with is twin brother, Norton.Both were orphaned in Alaska, rescued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and flown to Wisconsin via an Oscar Mayer jet.At the time, the cubs softened the tragic loss of Chief, the zoo's previous polar bear. He was shot after mauling a mentally ill man who got into his pen.The zoo said it hopes to replace Nanuq after opening a new polar bear exhibit dubbed Arctic Passage."We're certainly going to miss him, and we're doing this for the good of the species and also to put us in good shape for our new exhibit," Hubing said.About $2 million in donations for that exhibit is still needed, so officials said it won't open for at least a year and a half.Until then, the zoo said it'll work on securing a breeding pair of polar bears. The exhibit is supposed to hold four and features an underground glass viewing tunnel.
VIDEO: Watch The ReportNanuq, the zoo's 1,000-pound male polar bear, is being sent to a zoo on the east coast to breed.The bear captured many hearts back in the 1980s, when he and his twin arrived as small cubs. Now, much to the chagrin of his fans, Nanuq is leaving Madison, his longtime female companion Mishka and the place he's called home for more than 20 years."It's sad. He's always the one that's in the water and swimming and it's really fun to see him," said Christine Gold, who said her family loves watching the polar bears.But Henry Vilas Zoo officials said Nanuq must go to a zoo in Buffalo, N.Y., to mate with a female as part of a nationwide captive breeding program.At the Henry Vilas Zoo, there is no room for Mishka to raise a cub, so she's on birth control while her male friend gets ready to head east."There's a lot of science that goes into this and a lot of planning and this was his time, so we hope he does well," said Jim Hubing, director of the Henry Vilas Zoo.Nanuq was first welcomed to Madison in 1988 as a cub along with is twin brother, Norton.Both were orphaned in Alaska, rescued by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and flown to Wisconsin via an Oscar Mayer jet.At the time, the cubs softened the tragic loss of Chief, the zoo's previous polar bear. He was shot after mauling a mentally ill man who got into his pen.The zoo said it hopes to replace Nanuq after opening a new polar bear exhibit dubbed Arctic Passage."We're certainly going to miss him, and we're doing this for the good of the species and also to put us in good shape for our new exhibit," Hubing said.About $2 million in donations for that exhibit is still needed, so officials said it won't open for at least a year and a half.Until then, the zoo said it'll work on securing a breeding pair of polar bears. The exhibit is supposed to hold four and features an underground glass viewing tunnel. Copyright 2009 by Channel 3000. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
