Chinese zoo denies its sun bears are people in costumes
A zoo in China has stated that the bears in its sun bear exhibit are real after a video went viral on Chinese social media. (Reuters/Shanghai Daily/X)
Representatives from the Hangzhou Zoo in eastern China are denying that their sun bears are really humans dressed in costume — and insisted that these are actually bears.
"Some people think I stand like a person," the Hangzhou Zoo wrote, as if in a sun bear's voice. "It seems you don't understand me very well."
A video of a bear standing on its hind legs and waving went viral on Chinese social media in late July, said Reuters.
The bear is named Angela.
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Despite the zoo's denial that the bears are humans, tourists have been "flocking" to the zoo to decide for themselves, reported Reuters.
Visitors to the zoo have increased by about 30% since the video was posted, said Chinese news source Chao News.
A video of Angela, a sun bear at the Hangzhou Zoo, has gone viral after some people said she resembles a human. (Reuters/Shanghai Daily X)
"After seeing this bear standing up on the internet, I wanted to see how it looks in real life, so I came here," said a man with the surname You, who explained he had only half-believed the video he saw online, as Chao News also reported.
Chinese media will be given access to the bears to confirm that they are actually bears, the Associated Press reported.
"Because of the way they stand, some people online question whether they are ‘humans in disguise,’" said the Chinese newspaper Hangzhou Daily.
The loose skin is one way the sun bear protects itself against predators.
The Hangzhou Zoo further noted that the extreme temperatures would make it physically impossible for a human to wear a bear suit for a long period of time.
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"Our zoo is government-run, so that kind of situation would not happen," said a staffer at the Hangzhou Zoo said on its WeChat account.
WeChat is a Chinese social app.
In the summer, given the very hot temperatures, "if you put on a fur suit, you certainly couldn't last more than a few minutes without lying down," said the zoo.
Visitors have been flocking to the zoo to see the famous upright-standing sun bear for themselves. (Reuters/Shanghai Daily X)
The sun bear is the world's smallest bear species, says the website for the San Diego Zoo.
It is roughly half the size of the American black bear. They are about 3½ to 4½ feet long, and weigh up to 145 pounds.
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They are native to Southeast Asia, and are currently listed as a "threatened" species, said the San Diego Zoo.
While Angela's loose skin was cited by some as a reason they believed the bear was a person in an ill-fitting costume, sun bears actually have loose skin.
The loose skin is a way the bear can protect itself from predators.
A sun bear seen here eating watermelon at another zoo in China. The animal is a "threatened" species. (Tang Ke/Visual China Group via Getty Images)
Along with its claws and teeth, "if a predator were to latch on during a struggle, the sun bear can turn in its loose skin and bite its attacker," said the San Diego Zoo.
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While the zoo is staying firm that Angela is indeed a sun bear, Chinese zoos have made headlines in the past for passing one animal off as another, noted the Associated Press.
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This included a dog that was dyed to resemble a wolf, a Tibetan mastiff that was said to be a lion — and a donkey that was painted with stripes to look like a zebra.
The Associated Press contributed reporting.
