Kiska the polar bear has been a charismatic character at the Albuquerque BioPark since 1997, wowing visitors with his white coat, huge paws and playful demeanor. Zoo-goers celebrated their bear for International Polar Bear Day.
On Saturday, Feb. 28, the Albuquerque BioPark Zoo celebrated their bear for International Polar Bear Day. The BioPark hosted discovery stations packed with biofacts, hands-on activities to help guests explore polar bears’ natural history, how they stay warm and what locals can do to help polar bears and their cubs in the wild.
Kiska, the 29 year old senior polar bear, was honored throughout the event. Kiska is a healthy bear for his age, BioPark Science Education Coordinator Cesar Bustillos said.
“(Kiska) swims perfectly fine. He walks perfectly fine. He dives into the water perfectly fine. It’s a testament to the care that we put into our polar bear here at the BioPark. Even though he’s living in the middle of the desert, we’re still meeting his needs here,” Bustillos said.
International Polar Bear Day was founded in 2011 to raise awareness and conserve the world’s polar bears, coinciding with the time when polar bear moms and cubs are snug in their dens.
The event is a great and fun way to spread the message that polar bears need our help, Bustillos said
Demi Hamilton brought her son to the zoo to see Kiska.
“I saw (the event) online, and I know that he likes to see animals. So I thought, why not? Plus, we haven’t seen the polar bear before,” Hamilton said.
Located near Kiska’s habitat were a series of tables that had different facts and games related to polar bears and their habitat along with demonstrations of shared traits with other species of bears and examples of how polar bears are tracked to monitor their health and feeding patterns.
“You get to learn more about the polar bear’s inner workings to better understand why we need to save their habitats and the polar bears themselves,” Bustillos said.
Lisa Hansen, a volunteer guide at the zoo, was there to provide information about polar bears and other animals. Hansen’s table showcased the work done by scientists to track polar bears.
“We want people to know where the polar bears live and how we’re able to track them, and we’re able to track them through the collars and the GPS ear tags and the things that stick to their fur, which is the newest prototype, less invasive than anything else. And we just want people to understand how important polar bears are to the world’s ecosystem,” Hansen said.
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Along with educating people on polar bears as a species, volunteers taught attendees how to conserve their habitat and their numbers in the wild.
“There are a lot of animals on our earth that are going extinct, and we want to make sure that polar bears don’t become one of them,” Hansen said.
Elizabeth Bolke is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at culyur@dailylobo.com or on X @dailylobo
