During most of my visits to the Bronx Zoo, the polar bear (Ursus maritimus) is usually sleeping or too hot to move around much, but yesterday she was in a much more playful mood. While they certainly are powerful predators, polar bears can be quite playful, and during the winter adult males sometimes play with dogs in the wild. Very little seems to be known about why polar bears and dogs get along during this time of the year, but for whatever reason there is little tension in what otherwise might be an antagonistic confrontation.
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That's a fantastic photo, Brian. Next time you're thinking of visiting the Bronx zoo, will you let me know? I've never been.
Melanie
Omigod, that video of the polar bears and the dogs is too cute!
The polar bear in your photo looks like she's playing with a bowling ball? She actually looks like a big puppy who's found some water to play in.
How do they keep the polar bears cool in the summer? It must be terribly hot for them.
Melaine; Sure thing! You'll love it (especially in the springtime when the gorillas are outside).
Elisabeth; It wasn't a bowling ball, but it was something similar. She really loved it, and I have a whole sequence of her playing with it. She's old (you can can tell she's a bit grizzled and has a cracked front lower canine in the photo) but she was very lively yesterday.
From what I can gather the pool is kept cold and there are artificial rocks in the exhibit that are kept cool (just like others are kept warm for other animals this time of year). It's still awfully hot for this bear, though, and the ones at the Central Park and Philadelphia zoos also become very lethargic in the summer due to the heat & humidity.