A female polar bear wandered into Norilsk several days ago and was caught by local zoologists and their colleagues from Royev Ruchei Park of Flora and Fauna in Krasnoyarsk, reports the press service of the Norilsk city administration.

According to Alexander Korobkin, who is in charge of the Krasnoyarsk Territorial Ecology Ministry’s Department of State Control and Oversight to Protect and Manage the Animal World and Habitat, the bear is about 12 months old and weighs about 200 kg. Veterinarians are currently examining the animal. 

Other specialists have arrived in Norilsk to examine the bear and decide whether to relocate her to her natural habitat in the Arctic or to the Krasnoyarsk Zoo. It appears that the predator has covered at least 500 km.

There are plans to send the bear to Royev Ruchei Park of Flora and Fauna on Friday as it is suspected that she will not be able to be set free in the Arctic for health reasons.

However, some specialists disagree. Viktor Nikiforov, coordinator of the sea animals programme of the Marine Mammal Council, is confident that there are no reasons for taking the animal to the zoo.

“Numerous photo and video materials show a young bear aged 1.5-2.5 years which behaves normally. It is necessary to quickly relocate the animal to its habitat, the Kara Sea coast, in order to minimise conflict with the local population,” he noted.

According to Nikiforov, the current situation on the Kara Sea coast is extremely favourable for polar bears which can drift on ice-floes and hunt ringed seals there.

(Photo © Irina Yarinskaya, Zapolyarnaya Pravda newspaper)