By Staff Reports
(WAIKĪKĪ) – The Honolulu Zoo is happy to welcome the arrival of a new Malayan sun bear from Ohio. The female sun bear, Scruffy, was born in the wild in Malaysia and transported to Honolulu from the Cleveland Zoo. She is approximately 30 years old and weighs approximately 73 pounds.
Scruffy joins the male sun bear, Blackie, who she was housed with at the Cleveland Zoo for a period of time. Blackie was transported to Honolulu on November 6, 2008.
“We are very excited to reintroduce Scruffy to her old friend, Blackie,” said Honolulu Zoo Director Linda Santos. “It was a touching reunion as Scruffy and Blackie immediately greeted each other through the gate when Scruffy arrived. Scruffy has completed her quarantine period and zoo staff can now work on integrating her to share the habitat with Blackie.”
Due to their ages, Scruffy and Blackie have not been identified as a breeding pair.
Sun bears are found in the tropical forest habitats of Southeast Asia. They are usually jet black with light colored muzzles and cream colored, sickle-shaped claws. Sun bear adults, on average weighing less than 200 pounds, are the smallest of the bear species. They are omnivores and use their exceptionally long tongue to feed on insects, honey and fruits. The tropical regions where they are found provide sun bears year-round availability of food, so they do not hibernate. Sun bears are listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, with a global population decline primarily due to large-scale deforestation throughout Southeast Asia over the past three decades.
Scruffy and Blackie can be seen in the sun bear exhibit at the base of Diamond Head next to the Kamehameha and Koa butterfly art wall/photo op in the Ectotherm Complex.