The Rostock Zoo celebrated the first birthday of the polar bear twins Kaja and Skadi with ice cream cake. Watched by numerous children, the animals were visibly happy on Monday about the blocks of ice in which, for example, a melon was frozen. As with other polar bears, watermelon is one of the girls’ favorite foods, explained Daniela Lahn, curator for mammals. Chicken or salmon oil are also popular.
“The two young animals have developed splendidly,” said Lahn. “They play a lot together and can now swim and dive very well.” In addition, they are slowly getting into adolescence and sometimes start fighting over food.
According to the zoo, when the two polar bears were born a year ago, they weighed less than a kilogram and were the size of small guinea pigs. Kaja now weighs 120 and Skadi 108 kilograms. “We are very happy that our twins are healthy and lively and have developed so well,” said zoo director Antje Angeli.
Kaja and Skadi are the first polar bear offspring for parents Sizzel and Akiak and also in the Polarium, which opened in 2018 – the new home of polar bears and penguins in Rostock Zoo. According to the zoo, 37 polar bear cubs have been raised so far. The zoo has kept the International Polar Bear Stud Book since 1980. According to this, around 300 polar bears currently live in 118 zoos worldwide. According to the information, the occurrence in the wild is currently only estimated at around 23,000 animals. The loss of sea ice due to climate change is considered the greatest threat to their survival.
