Cranbeary returns to Denver Zoo

This photo was taken by me at the Memphis Zoo in March 2009



Memphis Zoo
March 27, 2010

Zoo staff is very sad to announce that we are saying goodbye to one of our beloved polar bears, Cranbeary, who will return to the Denver Zoo next Thursday. Cranbeary has been a Memphis Zoo resident since the opening of the Northwest Passage exhibit in early 2006. Cranbeary will leave April 1 to take her place as mate of the Denver Zoo’s male polar bear.

Her departure will leave a void in the hearts of visitors and keepers alike. “When Cranbeary came to the Memphis Zoo, her easy-going, fun-loving ‘personality’ was immediately apparent,” said Emily Smith, Team Leader of Northwest Passage. “In fact, she was voted most popular animal at the Zoo a few years ago."

Polar bears are the largest land carnivore on Earth. Females usually weigh about 500 pounds, and males generally grow two to three times that size. It is estimated between 22,000 and 25,000 polar bears are in the wild, though exact numbers are not known in their Arctic habitat of Alaska, Canada, Russia, Greenland and Norway.

Even though Cranbeary is leaving, there will still be polar bears at the Memphis Zoo. “Payton” and “Haley” will still be on exhibit for Zoo visitors to enjoy.

About Cranbeary

Cranbeary is a 600-pound, 8-year old originally from the Denver Zoo. She has two metal plates and 26 screws in her leg from surgery that was completed in February 2007. Surgeons from the Campbell Clinic and Zoo veterinarians had to set Cranbeary’s leg after she broke it after a fall in her exhibit. She received well over 500 get-well letters and cards, which demonstrates her popularity with Zoo visitors.

Source:
http://www.memphiszoo.org/default.aspx?p=15275&beid=108991