Polar bear 'stressed out by her mate'
Dublin Zoo was so fed up by the mood swings of its female polar bear that it commissioned a study to find out what was wrong – and discovered that her male companion was stressing her out.
Zoo keepers noticed the female’s continual pacing and realised that the male was at the heart of the problem.
Now the pair are to be moved to a zoo in Hungary where there is enough room to separate them and give the female her own space.
“The report found that the female demonstrated symptoms of stress when she is in near the male and to remove this stress a separate area or retreat exclusive to the female polar bear was recommended,” Dublin Zoo director Leo Oosterweghel said.
Mr Oosterweghel said it was not possible to redesign the enclosure at Dublin Zoo to separate the bears so they had to hunt for a new home.
After looking at various European locations staff found the perfect new location for the animals at Hungary’s Sosto Zoo.
“This new enclosure seemed to perfectly match the recommendations in the study in that it was very large with two separate sections, and offered the female an area to retreat to when she chooses," Mr Oosterweghel said.
He said he travelled to Hungary last week to look at the enclosure and gave it the green light.
The two polar bears are due to move to Sosto Zoo next week.
