Memphis Zoo Welcomes Polar Bears

Memphis Zoo Welcomes Polar Bears

For the first time in six years the Memphis Zoo is again home to some polar bears. Two polar bears from the Brookfield Zoo in Chicago (on loan as part of a breeding program)were delivered by Federal Express Wednesday in their ice covered crates.

Three-year-old Haley and 2-year-old Payton are the first animals to officially move into the zoo's new Northwest Passage Exhibit. The exhibit, which will also feature sea lions, seals, bald eagles and ravens, opens to the public on March 3rd.

The polar bears will spend a couple of days getting adjusted to their night house before being introduced to their outdoor area featuring a chilled 130,000 gallon freshwater pool. The zoo's first underwater building is the focal point of the Northwest Passage exhibit.

Payton and Haley have been playmates since October 2005, and the zoos hope that they produce offspring after they reach sexual maturity at age 5 or 6, said Sondra Katzen, a Brookfield Zoo spokeswoman.

The breeding loan was arranged by a conservation program for endangered and threatened species. Polar bears are considered potentially threatened.

"Because of global warming, a lot of the natural habitat that they're in, the ice isn't staying frozen as long as it should," Katzen said. "They aren't getting the food that they need."

Next week Haley and Payton will be joined by a third polar bear. Cranbeary is now living at the Denver zoo.

"They'll be out in the yard all three playing together. I was able to visit Payton and Haley in Chicago. They are absolutely entertaining. The public is going to love them," said zoo keeper, Emily Schultz.

"They are the stars of the new exhibit," said Julie Dodson, spokeswoman for the Memphis Zoo. "Visitors will be able to see them both above and under water."

Zoo members will get a sneak peak at the Northwest Passage Exhibit later this month. The $23 million project was funded primarily by private donations.

Brookfield Zoo officials plan to reunite Payton's mother and father, Arki and Aussie, in February in hope that they breed again, Burke said.