Polar
Bear
Ursus maritimus
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are found around the North
Pole, Alaska, arctic Canada, Greenland, Scandanavia,
and Russia. The polar bear's scientific name means "sea
bear". They are excellent swimmers--their feet are partially
webbed and their fur is water-repellent. Their environment
is extremely cold but they are able to withstand it.
The polar bear's entire body is covered in fur, even
the bottom of its paws. The polar bear's main food source
is the seal, but when they are not available, polar
bears will prey on young walrus, beluga whales, fish,
and seabirds. In the summer months, they will also eat
lichens, moss, and berries. Polar bears are under threat
due to the loss of their habitat. They need sea ice
to be able to move to different hunting grounds, but
global warming is causing the ice to melt earlier each
year. This means that the polar bear has less time to
hunt and put on weight for their winter fast.
 Our
polar bear, "Mercedes" is the only polar bear
in a UK zoo, and had been in Edinburgh Zoo since 1984.
She was rescued from her native Canada after she was
scheduled to be shot. Unfortunately, she roamed into
a nearby town in search of food and, as they are dangerous
animals, this behaviour had to be discouraged. Initially,
she was captured and the number "39" was painted
on her coat which allowed her to be tracked. On her
third visit the decision was made to shoot her. Luckily,
one of our Society's life members enlisted the help
of her cousin, a former Minister of Fisheries in Canada,
who helped RZSS save her and provide a new home. Mercedes,
the car company, assisted with the costs of her transport,
hence her name.
When Mercedes first arrived in Edinburgh Zoo, she
was paired with a male polar bear, Barney. They had
two cubs, To-Nuik and Ohoto. For the past fifteen years
Mercedes has been on her own - which is the natural
social state for this solitary animal. Mercedes' keepers
provided the highest possible standards of care and
whilst her enclosure was adequate to meet her needs,
public perception had always been that they would like
to see her in a larger enclosure.
This October therefore, Mercedes was re-housed in
a brand new £300,000 home here at the Highland
Wildlife Park where we created the largest polar bear
enclosure in Europe. Mercedes' new home features a large
natural pool set in over four acres of land, which is
typical of the polar bear's tundra environment. Visitors
can watch Mercedes from both the main reserve and from
a brand-new viewing platform at the top of the hill,
which will provide a unique insight into the natural
behaviour of this wonderful and yet sadly endangered
mammal.
To celebrate the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s
100th birthday, we launched our Centenary Fundraising
Appeal on 18 March 2009 to raise £75,000 to create
this enclosure for Mercedes. The Society was delighted
that the army pledged to contribute their time and machinery
to develop a state-of-the-art home for Mercedes. This
meant that our new £300,000 enclosure only cost
the Society £75,000, which was raised through
donations.
We are grateful to our members, adopters, supporters
and visitors for generously donating to this appeal.
On 31 September 2009 we surpassed our target and closed
the appeal.
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