Gus the Polar Bear who lived at New York City's Central Park Zoo was euthanized today due to an inoperable tumor discovered yesterday. He was 27, outliving the average age of 20,7 years of zoo-kept polar bears.
“Gus was an icon at the Central Park Zoo and a great source of joy for our visitors and staff,” said Jim Breheny, the Wildlife Conservation Society’s executive vice president of zoos and aquarium.
The zoo estimates 20 million visitors came to see Gus during his lifetime there, and he made headlines in 1994 when his stereotypy behaviors brought him a mate and many toys.
The bear attracted heaps of publicity back in 1994, when concern arose over his repetitive swimming pattern. An animal behaviorist was hired and an “enrichment program” was designed to put him in a better frame of mind.
Gus is credited with bringing attention to the plight of polar bears in the Arctic losing habitat due to climate change.
A blogger at the Village Voice believes Gus died of a broken heart.
Gus, the lumbering white bear on display at the Central Park Zoo, has died at the age of 27. The lovable oaf had an inoperable tumor in his throat, prompting zoo officials to euthanize him. Gus's mate Ida was euthanized in 2011 after battling her own cancer. The old boy has kept a much lower profile ever since. At least now they're reunited in Arctic Circle Heaven, along with the Arctic Circle itself.
He will be missed. Go
here for more images of Gus and Ida.