The death of a polar bear at a Calgary zoo was due to horse play, in what is a tragic incident.
That’s the conclusion of a necropsy (or an autopsy for animals) conducted on a seven-year-old male named Baffin who died on Friday, July 19 at the Wilder Institute/Calgary Zoo. Baffin was rescued when he was less than a year old after being orphaned in the wild. He had lived most of his life at another Canadian zoo near Winnipeg before being transferred to the Calgary institution.
He had been accompanied on that trek by another orphaned male polar bear, eight-year old Siku, and it was this companion that bears some responsibility for Baffin’s untimely death. The necropsy, conducted by an independent wildlife pathologist, concluded that Baffin drowned after his trachea was crushed while engaging in “rough play” with Siku, the zoo explained in a statement. Baffin presumably lost consciousness while underwater due to the injury. The bear had been in otherwise “excellent physical condition” and showed no signs of heat-related stress.
It’s been a difficult few days following the unexpected loss of polar bear, Baffin. Necropsy results show he drowned after a tracheal injury from rough play w/ Siku. He was in excellent health with no signs of heat stress. We continue to grieve his loss.💔 https://t.co/C5HIo5yNlE pic.twitter.com/4q8jZaibSK
— Calgary Zoo (@calgaryzoo) July 23, 2024
“Although the necropsy results are conclusive about the cause of Baffin’s death, they offer little solace to our team that loved Baffin so deeply”, said Colleen Baird, the zoo’s director of animal care, health, and welfare. “Baffin and Siku shared a long history as longtime habitat mates and enjoyed a companionate relationship, which is why they were chosen to come to Calgary from Assiniboine Park Zoo. They displayed many natural polar bear behaviours, including playing daily in and out of the water. The type and intensity of play on the day of the incident appeared to be no different than the type of play their caregivers witnessed from them on a daily basis.”
Polar bears typically live to their late teens in the wild, though some individuals have been found who lived into their early 30s.
Baffin’s drowning is not the first time the Calgary Zoo has been under scrutiny due to animal deaths. In 2010, an external audit revealed that several creatures had died or been injured as a result of unqualified staff members or flaws in exhibit designs, according to a CBC report. Those included the death of a baby elephant, a hippo, four gorillas, and 41 stingrays, as well as dozens of bats and four sugar gliders.
