Visitors to a zoo in China are wondering whether its sun bear is, in fact, a human in a costume.
The questions sparked when a video showed the bear in question standing on its hind legs in a “human-like” manner.
Its hide also appeared wrinkly, similar to how the fabric of a costume would.
However, the zoo has since spoken out and clarified that it was, indeed, a real sun bear.
On Thursday (27 July), a video started circulating on Chinese social media where a sun bear in Hangzhou Zoo stood on its hind legs.
Per Chinese news outlet BRTV, visitors and netizens questioned whether the bear was actually a human in a costume.
This was due to its “human-like” movements when it stood up. At one point, it even raised a paw, seemingly waving to visitors.
Source: BRTV on Weibo
Its hide also appeared wrinkly at the back, similar to how a costume’s fabric would fold when moving.
In light of these claims, Hangzhou Zoo’s management spoke out and debunked these claims.
They told BRTV on Saturday (29 July) that it is simply impossible for a person to don a thick bear costume in the 40°C heat.
“If you get someone to wear such thick fur in this summer heat, they won’t last more than a few minutes before they need to lie down,” said a spokesperson for the zoo.
He chuckled and added, “We are a government-operated zoo. There will never be situations like that.”
In a separate report by e23, the deputy director of Hangzhou Zoo, Jiang Zhi, said this was not the first time its sun bear went viral.
As such, he thought it was a good time to raise awareness about these creatures again.
Currently, the zoo has sun bears, black bears, and brown bears.
Mr Jiang pointed out that sun bears are generally smaller than black bears but “look better” in comparison. However, they always get mistaken for their black counterparts as their hides are black too.
Black bears also have a V-shaped mark on their chest, while sun bears have a U-shaped mark.
Source: Twitter
The deputy director explained that, from afar, the mark on a sun bear’s chest could look round like the sun, thus giving rise to its name.
He also explained that most bears can stand on their hind legs and regularly do so in combat in the wild.
As they are friendly creatures, those in captivity may also stand to interact with visitors.
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Featured image adapted from BRTV on Weibo.
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