The UK’s Paradise Wildlife Park has shared a video of one of its sun bears standing on her hind legs after footage of a Chinese zoo’s sun bear went viral on social media.
Hangzhou Zoo in eastern China has denied claims that its sun bears are people dressed in costumes after sharing footage of the animal standing on its hind legs.
Now, Paradise Wildlife Park has contributed to the debate with its own video of sun bear Kyra. Alongside the video, the zoo wrote: “We can confirm that Kyra is a sun bear.” In another video, it said: “We can confirm that Kyra is still a sun bear.”
“Sun bears might look human when they stand, but they actually have the natural behaviour of standing on their hind feet,” said the wildlife park.
The zoo, home to sun bears Kyra and Inderea, said the animals are “the smallest member of the bear family” and can be found in the dense lowland forests of Southeast Asia.
“From southern China to Indonesia, sun bears, also known as Malayan sun bears earned their name from the bright golden patch on their chest,” Paradise Wildlife Park added.
“These markings have been part of legends saying they represent the rising sun. Whilst sun bears are the smallest species of bear, they still hold a stocky, muscular build with a thick but sleek black coat acting as a prevention to overheating in the humid tropical weather whilst providing protection from branches.”
Hangzhou Zoo responds to debate
Hanghzhou Zoo responded to the debate on its WeChat account from the perspective of the sun bear in the video, named Angela.
“Some people think I stand like a human, and it seems that you don’t understand me that much,” it said.
“Previously, some tourists thought that I was too tiny to be a bear. I have to emphasize again: I am a Malayan sun bear! Not a black bear! Not a dog! A sun bear!”
