Polar Bears

A few days after Inukshuk returned the girls would not let him in the water. A few days later they would not let him out. In the middle of the keeper talk he went down to the other end of the pool and slunk back to the field side. A few days after that I watched he and Aurora breeding.

So the countdown to another cubbing season has begun.

Great picture! It's nice to see the three bears back together again.

Terrific photo! It is neat to see how much better the exhibit looks under a heavy snowfall. Even though I strongly dislike the cold and where I live (near Vancouver) only receives a couple of days of snow each year, I think that I'd be enticed to visit Toronto Zoo in the depths of winter just to see the animal interactions with the white stuff.

It's interesting to see, for instance, Aurora playing with a ball she repeatedly pushes under the ice and then dives under to get it, a snowy owl you at first can only find by it's eyes, or an Arctic Fox in winter colours digging under the snow, presumably to find some leftover scrap of meat or a mouse.
But that is only on Tundra Trek. In Eurasia the Snow Leopard looks magnificent on the snow-covered rocks; the Red Pandas enjoy being out and active in the cold weather; the Chamois, the Tur, and so on.
The cheetahs and lions and Sumatran Tigers have heated pads and the cheetahs in particular will go out in any temperatures.
Almost forgot the tumbling in the snow Giant Panda, Da Mao!

The zoo is a fantastic place to visit in the winter for so many reasons. First there is all the activity from the cold weather hardy animals like Mr Wrinkly mentioned. They seem much more lively in the winter. Then there are the other big animals from warmer places who just look so out of place in the snow. Plus they seem to be on the move more to stay warm. When you get cold there are all the pavilions to warm you up with all of their inhabitants. But maybe best of all is that there is virtually no one there. You can linger as long as you like in a prime location. If you stumble across a keeper they have more time to chat. It's just nice to feel like you have to whole place pretty much to yourself. Go on a nice sunny day during the winter and its fantastic. Wish I lived closer to take advantage of winter visits.