Meet
the bears
Woodland Park Zoo’s two grizzly bears are brothers
named Keema and Denali and are 14 years old (2008). The brothers
arrived here from Washington State University in 1994. WSU
maintains a small population of grizzlies in order to conduct
long-term studies on bear nutrition.
Keema |
Denali |
Weight
The bears’ weights fluctuate depending on the season,
but generally they tip the scales in the range of 800-850
pounds each.
Enrichment
Keepers encourage the bears’ natural foraging behavior
by “scatter-feeding” produce and favorite food
items throughout the exhibit each morning and again later
in the day; providing new stumps, logs, props and other natural
items in the exhibit also introduces new sights and smells
to stimulate the bears’ senses. Keepers place browse
(branches and leaves) in the exhibit and grasses for the
bears to consume. They will also lace the exhibit with novel
scents such as elk dung and spices to stimulate their olfactory
sense. During the warmer times of the year, the bears are
provided overnight access to their exhibit, providing them
full use of all available areas to better accommodate any
need they have to move about their environment.
Exhibit
features
Various artificial elements including rockwork, a stream
and deep pool that maintains 20-30 live trout, many that
have lived in the pool for several years. The bears actively “fish” for
the trout, occasionally teaming up to corral and capture
the trout.
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