RACINE, Wis. — The Racine Zoo recently welcomed its latest resident, a 28-year-old sun bear named Fong.
Fong joined the zoo on Oct. 18 from the Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, Indiana. He made the trip with his primary keeper, as well as one of the Mesker Zoo's vet techs and mammal curators. This helped network the Racine staff with the Mesker staff.
According to the Racine Zoo, "They were able to go over Fong's trained behaviors, discuss his diet and medications, and his favorite enrichment (he loves peanut butter sandwiches!). As a zookeeper, sending an animal to a new zoo is similar to dropping a child off at school. If they can impart some of their knowledge about that animal to their new zoo family, then they know that animal will be in good hands."
Sun bears are a tropical species that originate from Southeast Asia, and due to this, they have many special adaptions. Sun bears don't need to hibernate due to warm temperatures and steady food supplies. They are omnivores and love bugs, fruits, nuts, vegetables, and other sweet treats - like honey! Only occasionally do sun bears eat meat.
The Racine Zoo says sun bears have large claws on slightly turned-in front paws, which help make tree climbing easier. Sun bears even build nests on larger tree branches and are known to sleep on branches as high as 25 feet.
"Sun bears are a new species to the Racine Zoo, and I am bear-y excited that the residents of Racine will be able to see one of these unique bears in their local zoo!” said Dan Powell, Curator of Animal Care and Conservation at Racine Zoo.
The Racine Zoo says although they are the smallest of the bear species, sun bears are very intelligent and can even mimic human facial expressions.
"Because of habitat loss and fragmentation, they are listed as “Vulnerable” by the IUCN (International Union for the Conservation of Nature). Tragically, they are also affected by the bile farming industry in Southeast Asia," the Racine Zoo said in a press release.
Fong is still getting used to his new home and his new care providers, but the Zoo says he is making himself comfortable. He participates in training sessions with his zookeepers and checks out the bear habitat on warmer winter days.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
