A zoo in China has denied suggestions some of its bears might be people in costumes. After photos of the animals standing as humans circulated online. Hangzhou Zoo said on social media that the sun bears from Malaysia are smaller than other bears and look different. But insisted they were the real thing.
A zoo in eastern China is denying suggestions some of its bears might be people in costumes. After photos of the animals standing like humans circulated online. The sun bears from Malaysia are smaller than other bears and look different but are the real thing, the Hangzhou Zoo said Monday on its social media account.
“Some people think I stand like a person,” said the posting, written from the bear’s point of view. “It seems you don’t understand me very well.” An employee who answered the phone at the zoo declined to talk about the bears. But said visits were being arranged for reporters Monday to see them.
Officials also said that a human inside a fuzzy costume would never survive summer temps soaring to more than 100 degrees. “If a person did wear a bear costume. They would be lying down within minutes due to the heat,” a spokesman said.
Internet users questioned whether the zoo’s bears were genuine after photos circulated showing one standing upright on slender hind legs. “Because of the way they stand, some people online question whether they are ‘humans in disguise,'” Chinese newspaper Hangzhou Daily said.
One social media user commented on a video of the bear that it “looks like it’s wearing a leather jacket”. Others suggested that the animal’s posture was “more upright” than your average person.
Sun bears are the size of large dogs, standing at most 1.3 meters (50 inches) tall on their hind legs. Compared with up to 2.8 meters (9 feet) for grizzlies and other species, according to the zoo. Other Chinese zoos have been accused of trying to pass off dogs dyed to look like wolves or African cats, and donkeys painted to look like zebras.
