The Arctic ambassadors at the San Diego Zoo’s Conrad Prebys Polar Bear Plunge habitat got a fishy treat when they dove into their pool this morning, on International Polar Bear Day (Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2018). Animal care staff provided the three polar bears—Tatqiq, Kalluk and Chinook—with 10 largemouth black bass, to encourage natural hunting behaviors and present additional opportunities to thrive. “Our goal is to promote species specific behaviors by creating novel experiences for these dynamic animals,” said Matt Akel, animal care manager. “Providing our polar bears the ability to hunt fish has proven to be an extremely rewarding experience.”
Animal care staff said they are particularly excited to be able to offer the bears live fish on a monthly basis. “Tatqiq is our most playful bear, and she’s managed to develop a smart technique when it comes to catching these fish,” said Nate Wagner, senior keeper. “Tatqiq has learned to corral the fish into the shallow end where they’re easier to catch, and she uses the corners of the habitat to her advantage.” The bears also cache their fishy snacks in snow piles or other hiding spots, so they can enjoy them throughout the day.
While their wild counterparts in the Arctic require a high-calorie diet of ringed seals to survive, the San Diego Zoo’s polar bears are given a fortified meat-based commercial carnivore diet, trout and other fish, cow femur bones, thawed rabbits, vegetables and lettuce as treats. Additional items are also offered to encourage species-specific behaviors, including a snow machine that allows the bears to dig and roll in freshly flaked ice.
The San Diego Zoo’s polar bears were originally found as orphaned cubs in the wild, with little or no chance of survival without a mother. They were rescued and brought to the Zoo, where they have thrived at the 5,500 square-foot Polar Bear Plunge habitat.
As the world’s largest land carnivore, polar bears have no natural predators—but climate change has led to record-breaking sea ice losses in the Arctic, posing a major threat to their survival. This has critically reduced the bears’ ability to find food and has caused declines in the number of polar bears, with young polar bears facing a higher mortality rate than adults. Today, it is estimated that there are approximately 23,000 polar bears living throughout the Arctic.
Polar bears are listed as Vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Endangered Species, and they are listed as a threatened species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. If Arctic sea ice continues to decrease at the current rate, the world’s polar bear population is projected to decline by up to 30 percent in the next 30 years. For more than a decade, San Diego Zoo Global’s researchers and its U.S. and Canadian partners have focused on contributing to science-based conservation strategies, to preserve and understand wild populations of polar bears.
Hi Jenn, I always love your articles. I love the video in this one and the photos and information from”Cool and Fun Facts” a few years ago. Both my daughter and I absolutely adore the polar bear cam. We watch them both day and night and love it when the camera is on one of them sleeping. All of the Keeper’s Notes post are quite old though. We would love a new post when possible with an update on each of the polar bears: Chinook, Tatqiq and Kalluk. How each of them are doing as they are moving into their elder years. I was so glad to read in this article that Tatqiq is so playful while fishing because she often seems so shy and a little intimidated by Chinook. I thought it was interesting when I saw Tatqiq’s brother Kalluk protecting her one day when she was trying to nap in the snow this past summer when Chinook kept trying to drive her away. He is such a gentle giant and seems to love playing with both of them when they swim. Even though she’s a bit aggressive we still love Chinook too and I think she’s the one who does the incredible back stroke and back flips when swimming. She’s about 22 yrs old now while the other two are 18 aren’t they? I love all the enrichment items that the Keeper’s give them–we especially loved watching them with the burlap sacks and the palm stalks as they rubbed on them in delight and held them like a “blankie” as they napped. Sometimes it’s so odd watching them, they remind us of big cats when they are napping. Also love them eating the carrots and rolling in the dirt and then looking like Brown Bears. Well we just love just about everything they do. Thank you to the Keepers and the video cam volunteers for all you do!
Hi I am new at watching these live cams and enjoying it very much. All the animals are very entertaining. I don’t know the names of the polar bears yet. I was just watching one of the bears and he/she was carrying around an object and at one point put its head on it then carried to another area. He/she then went and got a piece of cloth and started biting at it and making all strings. Can you tell me what that object was and why do they shred apart material.
I also love when the camera follows them around to where they are. Makes it more fun to watch.
Thank you
So cute! I just love watching Tatqiq in action, she is so graceful and reminds me of a tall, slender supermodel.
The part where she sticks her caught fish under her arm to carry to shore is so adorable, it makes her seem more human than bear.
Please continue to show more video clips of these beautiful bears.
Will we ever get regular polar bear updates? Can a volunteer be tasked with doing it. It would be nice to regularly hear what is going on with the bears.
Blog Monitor’s note: We appreciate your passion for our polar bears! We update when we have news to share, but there hasn’t been much to report lately; Chinook, Kalluk, and Tatqiq are being their awesome, bearly selves and there’s nothing really to talk about. It would kind of be: Polar Bear Update—everything’s going swimmingly! 😉 But if you have specific questions, I will funnel them to the keepers.
is Chinook pregnant
Blog Monitor’s note: Not that we know of at this point in time.
The same thing happens to me several times in the day 🙁
I can’t get to the live cams even after watching the videos. I’ve also tried skipping them with no success. I really miss the live cams 🙁
Blog Monitor’s note: Try using another browser and see if the problem persists. I’m able to see the cams with no problem, both at work and at home (I use Firefox—not a SDZG endorsement, just my own preference/opinion)
So as a Diamond Club member and contributor to our zoo, I find the ads now running before allowing access to the cam offensive. Also, cams no longer work on my Fire tablet because of these ads. Very upset!
Blog Monitor’s note: Firstly, thank you for past and continued support of San Diego Zoo Global—we are committed to saving species worldwide, and we couldn’t do it without you.
The video that runs before the Live Cam clicks in is our own; a way to let viewers know what we’re about, our commitment to saving species, and reminding them that everyone can make a difference.
About three seconds into the video, you’ll see a little box pop up that, when clicked, lets you skip the ad and go straight to cam-viewing—hope that helps.
We’re looking into the situation with the Fire tablet—the cams should still be coming up for you. Again, thank you for your support.
I love watching that bird (Egret?) teasing the bears, it shows no fear and this morning there were four of them.
It is so much fun to watch our furry friends. Thank you for the blog and the video. It is really nice to see Chinook and Tatqiq getting along so well. May be Kaluq mediated between them to patch up and be friends 🙂
They look like they are having a great time, thanks for the Video