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impshial t1_iyl4syf wrote

Reply to comment by hankepanke in Toledo Zoo welcomes twin polar bear cubs by citytiger

Polar bears are on the endangered list due to climate change, and the Toledo zoo is helping these bears safely have cubs in controlled environments. A lot of these animals are born in captivity, and released into the wild once they are able to protect and feed themselves.

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PixelateddPixie t1_iym0z92 wrote

The exact thoughts I had in my mind while reading this article and watching this video is how zoos are a necessary evil in this world. Not all of them are good. The animals aren't living the same lives they would in the wild. But the good zoos will do everything they can to ensure these animals are happy and help ensure that currently endangered animals do not become extinct.

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hankepanke t1_iylf7jh wrote

They aren’t being raised to be released though. They are being raised to be zoo animals. Bears raised in captivity probably aren’t well suited to surviving in the wild anyway.

>The AZA attempts to play matchmaker with polar bears by studying a number of factors, including genetics, of each one on a case-by-case basis. Through its species survival plan, the AZA is trying to stabilize the population of zoo-owned polar bears, which had plummeted to only 41 last fall after peaking out at 200 polar bears in 1995.

>There are now only 40 zoo-owned polar bears - 17 males and 23 females in the United States. They are spread out across 21 institutions, according to Allison Jungheim of the Como Park Zoo & Conservatory, who tracks captive polar bear trends for the AZA.

https://www.toledoblade.com/local/animals/2022/03/02/newest-member-of-toledo-zoo-s-arctic-encounter-exhibit-is-unveiled/stories/20220302054

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