Nile Hippo Expert
Well-Known Member
Pagi at Oakland Zoo is the youngest, she was born in November 2008.
North American Sun Bear Population
- Thread starter Valentinoamor
- Start date
Bulan and Pagi at Oakland will probably be the last, unless Kacey at Miami manages to outlive them.
All others are 26+ and the expected lifespan seems to be about 25-32 years, so unfortunately we're probably going to see a sharp drop off the next few years.
All others are 26+ and the expected lifespan seems to be about 25-32 years, so unfortunately we're probably going to see a sharp drop off the next few years.
GFgomez
Well-Known Member
The youngest is Pagi but it could be any one due to the health management.
GFgomez
Well-Known Member
Did the zoo confirm why wasn’t there any announcement to his passing. Has anyone checked the stud book ?
*Tampa, not Miami (which hasn’t had sun bears in years).
The studbook was last updated in July last year, after going 12 years without one. Not going to get much news from there.
*Tampa, not Miami (which hasn’t had sun bears in years).
Yes Tampa, error on my part there. As a general rule I'm used to the mnemonics in the studbooks but brain still wants to pin Lowry as Miami for some annoying reason.
Given they are on phase out .... for goodness sake send her to Europe to be part of a functioning ex situ conservation breeding program!
NOTA BENE: For the rest...., all is already lost ... the entire AZA/SSP population seems "wasted" to put it rather abstract.... Safe for perhaps 1-2 older males that might still be suitable / or good candidates for a captive-breeding effort. T
It’s fair to assume the reason this hasn’t happened is that Pagi is a Bornean sun bear and the entire European population (bar 1.1 in Cyprus) are of the Malayan subspecies.
Fair comment.
BTW: I still think the way AZA / SSP-Signature ESB is handling things is abandonning the entire being of ex situ conservation ethic. There are a good number of rescuee sun bears in Kalimantan in various rescue centers.
In Malaysian Kalimantan - the Federal State of Sabah there is even a sun bear conservation center with a release component (part of their funding may be sourced from outside fundors and likely some zoo facilities overseas are also involved...). Really, ... I am fairly miffed about this ... (I broach this subject more regularly where North America is concerned..., where species of major conservation concern are concerned and literally delisted at the strike of a TAG pencil).
They weren't "wasted". Several bears were in breeding situations but very few offspring were ever produced, so it was decided to discontinue the program. In fact this was a rarer situation than usual, in that breeding sun bears *wasn't* discouraged after the program ended because it was thought that any success could result in valuable information gained. And continually bringing in more from Bornean rescue centers presumably wouldn't have helped, since that was the source of the original population they had trouble breeding... not to mention, IIRC the Borneans were brought in because the original Malayan population was itself dying out from low reproduction... so there were at least two attempts to keep the species going. My understanding is that the captive populations in Europe and Oceania have had similar problems with reproduction too?
Meanwhile our Sloth Bears *are* being successfully bred and are in need of more space.
Not every species that declines or disappears from collections here was a result of mismanagement or misguided priorities.
In the case of the Oceania region at least the lack of individuals with normal social skills has jeopardised the breeding program. This is a result of them all being rescues. The only recent successful breeding results came from a pair of rescues who bred once, and another US born female who bred twice, once with a US born male and another time with a rescue.
GFgomez
Well-Known Member
Who are the US female and male born bears the
who are the US male and female bears ?
Bakti (1989-2001) and Chomel (1988-2009):
Chomel was born 02/08/1988 at the Miami Metro Zoo (now Zoo Miami). She was transferred to the San Diego Zoo in 1989; and then exported to Wellington Zoo in 1992.
Bakti was born at San Diego Zoo on 17/09/1989 and was sent with Chomel to Wellington Zoo in 1992.
Bakti and Chomel produced five litters (including two sets of twins) between 1996-1999. The first four litters were lost as neonates. The final litter (male twins) were named Madu and Arataki. Madu died aged two years; Arataki is still alive and lives at the National Zoo in Canberra.
After the death of Bakti in 2001, Chomel was paired with a rescue bear (Sean) and produced a female cub named Sasa in 2006. Sasa still lives at Wellington Zoo and is New Zealand’s only bear.
I guess it would have been better to have a healthy mix of rescuees and wild born sun bears. I personally think it would have been better to resocialise the rescuee bears in a new rescue and rehab center like the Sabah Bear Rescue Facility....
North American Sun Bear Population
Audubon Zoo:
0.1 Lorraine (Circa August 1, 1997)
Catoctin Wildlife Preserve:
0.1 Emika (Circa 2004)
Honolulu Zoo:
1.0 Blackie (Circa September 4, 1996)
Oakland Zoo:
0.1 Bulan (Circa September 24, 2006) Dibu x Marcella
0.1 Pagi (October 25, 2008) Dibu x Marcella
Saint Louis Zoo:
1.0 Rimba (Circa 1997)
San Diego Zoo:
0.1 Marcella (Circa 1996)
Zoo Atlanta:
1.0 Xander (October 10, 1999)
0.1 Sabah (October 17, 1997)
ZooTampa:
1.0 Kacey (Circa October 24, 2001)
Audubon Zoo:
0.1 Lorraine (Circa August 1, 1997)
Catoctin Wildlife Preserve:
0.1 Emika (Circa 2004)
Honolulu Zoo:
1.0 Blackie (Circa September 4, 1996)
Oakland Zoo:
0.1 Bulan (Circa September 24, 2006) Dibu x Marcella
0.1 Pagi (October 25, 2008) Dibu x Marcella
Saint Louis Zoo:
1.0 Rimba (Circa 1997)
San Diego Zoo:
0.1 Marcella (Circa 1996)
Zoo Atlanta:
1.0 Xander (October 10, 1999)
0.1 Sabah (October 17, 1997)
ZooTampa:
1.0 Kacey (Circa October 24, 2001)
Nile Hippo Expert
Well-Known Member
Can an admin maybe rename the thread "Sun Bears left in North America" since every single update lately has been deaths and it is a very aging population for the most part that is being phased-out entirely, so would this be a better title?
I feel like the current title (North American Sun Bear Population) aligns better with the other population lists in the index that have ‘population’ in the title.
The existing title would also be more helpful to people searching for information on the North American sun bear population, who would logically do a title search of ‘sun bear population’.
Ultimately, population lists are what they are. Some grow, others shrink. In this case, this thread details a record of the sun bear population from 14 holders in 2021; to 8 holders in 2025; continuing on to what I agree is an inevitable phase out.