Male polar bear kills female bear during breeding attempt at Detroit Zoo

Male polar bear kills female bear during breeding attempt at Detroit Zoo

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Anana, 20, and Nuka, 16, lived together without incident in 2020 and zoo officials say they are surprised and devastated by what happened.

“This was completely unexpected, and the Detroit Zoo team is devastated by the loss of Anana,” Scott Carter, director of life sciences at the Detroit Zoological Society, said in the statement.

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Nuka has lived at the zoo for 10 years, never showing harmful behavior towards female polar bears, according to the zoological society.

Anana had lived at the zoo for just over a year. Bears were reintroduced last week after several months of separation as part of a conservation program designed to protect endangered species.

“The Polar Bear Species Survival Plan of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) is a cooperative population management and conservation program that helps ensure the sustainability of healthy populations of animals in captivity,” the statement said.

The program has been successful through the recent birth of twin babies whose parents are Nuka and Suka, 8, according to the organization.

The last time an animal was killed by another animal at the zoo was in 1988. The incident also involved polar bears, the note said.

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