Eisbärenzucht (Ursus maritimus Phipps, 1774) im Zoo am Meer Bremerhaven – Fortsetzung einer langen Tradition

Breeding polar bears has a long tradition in the Zoo am Meer, the “Zoo at the Sea” in Bremerhaven. In the years between 1935 and 1974 three female bears gave birth to 32 cubs and 19 of them were successfully raised. In the following years many attempts to tie in with this tradition failed. Bad constructional conditions and disadvantageous animal pairings were the main reasons for the missing breeding success. After completely reconstructing the polar bear enclosure in the year 2002, as well as extending the breeding area with an additional smaller breeding cave in 2012 and pairing male Lloyd and female Valeska in 2013 a new polar bear birth and upbringing could be experienced after 40 years. Offspring Lale is the 35th cub in Bremerhaven Zoo.