Story highlights
A baby polar bear made his debut in Germany this weekend
He is the half-brother of Knut, the famous polar bear who died in 2011
Remember Knut, the adorable polar bear who captured hearts in 2006? Now it’s his baby half-brother’s turn.
Officials at the Rostock Zoo in Germany say the polar bear was born December 3 but has been cuddling up to his mother, Vilma, in the zoo’s birth den for the past two months.
This week, he made his first acquaintance with the snow, and zookeepers expect him to make his public debut in March. Until then, fans can watch the zoo’s weekly video updates of the cub clumsily finding his bearings – and footing – in the nursery alongside his doting mother.
The baby bear is still unnamed; the Rostock Zoo is taking suggestions until March 10. If you have an idea, email presse@zoo-rostock.de.
The newest puffball shares a father with Knut, the polar cub who warmed the world’s heart when he was abandoned by his mother at Zoo Berlin in 2006 and then hand-raised by zookeepers.
In 2011, the 4-year-old polar bear tragically died of encephalitis, and fans big and small lined the zoo’s polar bear enclosure with flowers and notes.
