The Highland Wildlife Park has thrown a joint birthday party for the UK’s only two polar bears on public display.
Turning four and five years old respectively, and at over 450kg each, Walker and Arktos still have a little more growing left to do. To mark their birthdays keepers have constructed two ice cakes, complete with fish and topped with a few tasty sardines as an extra birthday treat.
Walker has been at the Highland Wildlife Park since 2010, after being transferred from Rhenen Zoo in the Netherlands.
He was joined in his six-acre enclosure in the Invernessshire park by Arktos, who was transferred from Hannover Zoo in Germany.
Douglas Richardson, Animal Collection Manager at Highland Wildlife Park, said:
“There is a slight age gap between the boys, Arktos is now five and Walker is just a year younger at four years old. They quickly built up a strong bond from the word go, taking to each other extremely well and since that initial introduction last April they have been spending the vast majority of their time together. They can often be spotted splashing and swimming in their pond, wrestling playfully and even feeding nose to nose – they definitely have a healthy competitive relationship that you’d expect from two young bears.
“There are only a few days between their individual birthdays, so for their first birthday together we thought it would only be fitting to throw them a joint birthday party. Walker and Arktos both love their food, and this means they can sometimes get a bit feisty if one is getting fed before the other. However to stop any food envy the birthday bears will be able to sink their teeth into their very own birthday ice cakes filled with lots of different fish and topped with some of their favourite treats, including sardines.
“They are both still sub-adults and it won’t be for around another two years or so before both males are fully grown and sexually mature. But as male polar bears are much more sociable there is still many years of wrestling and chasing one another for these young polar bears to come!”
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