January is a time for reflecting on the changes that occurred during the previous year, such as the passing of famous figures. A sentimental favorite that caught our eye was the death of Knut the polar bear, a top tourist attraction at the Berlin Zoo, in March.
Knut, who was a cute and cuddly baby bear when he first made his appearance at the zoo, not only highlighted the plight of these threatened animals, but also doubled visits to the zoo during his short life.
Knut was considerably bigger and crankier when he died suddenly at the age of 4, but his demise was significant enough to Berlin tourism that zookeepers are considering stuffing him for an ongoing exhibit at the Natural History Museum — a suggestion that has drawn controversy — and a memorial statue is in the works at the zoo.
Filling the void is Siku, an irresistibly cute Danish polar bear who has garnered worldwide acclaim in the last few weeks with his online antics and who is likely to attract enthusiastic visitors to his home at the Scandinavian Wildlife Park in Denmark. Siku was born near Copenhagen in November and, like Knut, is being cared for and bottle-fed by humans because his mother can’t feed him.
It is too soon to gauge potential visitor numbers to the park this year, but Siku’s thousands of Facebook fans and 1 million or so YouTube hits augur well. The bear’s handlers have apparently learned lessons from Knut’s fate, however, and have vowed to give the animal a life less like that of a rock star and more like a normal polar bear.
For one thing, his environment at the park is said to be the largest of its kind in the world, and Siku won’t be isolated from other polar bears. We also suspect that his popularity will focus attention on the plight of polar bears in general, who were listed as a threatened species in 2008, largely because of melting ice and climate change.
To visit Siku on Facebook, go to www.facebook.com/siku2011.