AFTER VIRAL VIDEO NONSENSE, GO SEE REAL SUN BEARS IN PERSON HERE IN THE UNITED STATES
It’s most likely that you have heard about sun bears, though only vaguely because of the viral dialogue online about a picture of one at a zoo in China was actually a human in a bear costume. To be fair, the video was at an angle that anyone unfamiliar with this particular breed might assume it was really a human being perpetrating a ridiculous hoax. The Hangzhou Zoo’s protestation of the silly viral sensation only seemed to give it more life. So in case you are still not sure, no, that video is not a human being in a costume. It’s really a bear that stands on its hind legs. You can easily visit one here in the United States!
Read More: Arizona’s Mohave County Was Obsessed With Hand Counting All Ballots, Then Reality Hit
MOST PEOPLE DONT’ THINK SUN BEARS ARE REAL BEARS AT A GLANCE, BUT THEY ARE
So what should you know about sun bears? For one, as above, they easily stand on their hind legs. They also have a golden patch of fur on their chests that doesn’t jive with most people’s idea of what you’d find on a bear. They are a vulnerable species, native to the tropical forests of Southeast Asia, such as Malaysia and Thailand. And, clearly, most people in the West have no idea that sun bears are a real thing, and eagerly jumped on the viral bandwagon suggesting the Hangzhou Zoo in China was perpetrating a hoax.
Related:
IN THE UNITED STATES, YOU CAN FIND EASILY VISIT SUN BEARS AT 11 DIFFERENT ZOOS
But no, not a hoax! And if you are curious to see one in person and get an informed opinion for yourself, you easily can in the United States. Zoo Atlanta, in Georgia, has two sun bears; Xander and Sabah. The San Diego Zoo has 4, the only ones born in the U.S. that have survived captivity in the last 10 years. You can also find them at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, the Catoctin Wildlife Preserve in Maryland, The Topeka Zoo in Kansas, the El Paso Zoo in Texas, the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in Ohio, the Oakland Zoo in California, the Honolulu Zoo in Hawaii, and the Mesker Park Zoo in Evansville, Indiana.
So go have a look! Sun bears are real, and they’re not that hard to find.
