Zoo is a fascinating place where you may find many interesting animals. One such fascinating event involving an animal occurred when a video of a sun bear in a zoo in China Zoo went viral on social media. Many people who saw the video questioned whether the bear was real as it appeared to have uncanny human body proportions. This led to speculations that the sun bear was actually human in disguise.
The zoo in the eastern province of Zhejiang came forward after going viral and denying all the claims, insisting that it is a sun bear. They claim that the bear is a little smaller, which creates the illusion when it is standing on its hind legs, but it is indeed a bear. Regardless, the netizens are skeptical and believe that the alleged bear is a human in a costume.
Chinese Zoo released a statement about the sun bear
Since the video of the bear that looks straying out from the Korean movie Secret Zoo went viral, the Hangzhou Zoo released a statement on its official social media handle from the bear’s perspective. In the short notice, the bear, whose name is Angela, states, “People believe that I stand like a human and it appears that you don’t understand me that much.”
@news.com.au Not totally convinced tbh 🤨 #thatssuspicious #bear #viraltiktok #china
- The statement continues to emphasize that Angela is a Malayan Sun Bear while it refutes the tourists’ claims that the bear is too small and perhaps a black bear or a dog. The zoo also stated that a human can not last a few minutes inside a fur suit under the scorching heat that reaches 104F during summer.
- Following the original clip posted on Douyin, the Chinese alternative of TikTok, it went viral across global social media, and many netizens started searching for what a Malayan sun bear looks like. They tried to find a similar-looking bear which kept the debate alive on social media.
What is a Malayan sun bear?
The sun bear is a popular species primarily found in Southeast Asia. It is one of the smallest bear species measuring only 70 centimeters (28 inches) by the shoulder and weighing 25-65 kilograms (55-143 pounds). Despite being small, the sun bears have a stocky build with a large paw that is helpful in climbing.
- Meanwhile, the bear in the viral video appeared lean and sparked the debate that it looks similar to an ill-fitting costume. Many netizens continued to discuss Angela by comparing the 15-second clip with other images of the sun bears. Read some of the reactions below.
Expert denies the ‘fake bear’ allegations
Wong Siew Te, a wildlife biologist and the founder of the Bornean Sun Bear Conservation Centre in Malaysia, confirmed that Angela is a sun bear for sure to NBC News. After researching the sun bears for the past 25 years, he states that this species can be very human-like. He shared that their walk, stance, and, even at times, pattern of carrying their offspring resemble humans.
- Moreover, the population of sun bears has shrunk by 30% in the last 30 years. The International Union for Conservation of Nature also lists the species as vulnerable animals. Siew Te shared that he hopes this incident will spark more awareness about the sun bears and how they are negatively affected by the human activities of deforestation and hunting.
What’s your opinion about the alleged fake sun bear in the Chinese zoo? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below. For more content, stay with us here at Spiel Times. Make sure you subscribe to our push notifications and never miss an update. You can also follow us on Spiel Anime, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. Until next time!