A new large enclosure is ready and waiting for the arrival of a new female polar bear at the Highland Wildlife Park near Aviemore, with hopes that she will soon bear the first cubs in the UK for more than two decades
She is due to arrive in the spring, and will join Walker and Arktos, Scotland's only resident males polar bears.
Professor Chris West, Chief Executive of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland who run the park at Kincraig, said in his blog:
"This will be a very significant move and will, we hope, help towards securing the future of this species, which is threatened by habitat destruction and global warming. If she settles quickly into her new home, introductions to one of the polar bear males may happen as early as April. It is still incredible to think that we may even have polar bear cubs as early as December at Highland Wildlife Park. The last polar bear cub born in the UK was 23 years ago."
Sixty military personnel from 71st Engineer Regiment and a contingent from the South Dakota National Guard helped create the new two and a half acre enclosure complete withits own pond.
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