Salisbury Zoo celebrating birth of Andean bear cub

SALISBURY, Md. – The City of Salisbury and the Salisbury Zoo have announced the addition of an Andean bear cub to the zoo.

Officials say the cub was born on January 11th to parents Chaska (female) and Pinocchio (male), after several months of being monitored and observed by the zoo’s animal care staff. Chaska was carefully observed, and several ultrasounds were performed, indicating a healthily-developing pregnancy.

The new baby, whose gender hasn’t been determined yet, has been hiding away with Chaska since birth.

Pinocchio was rescued from Ecuador three years ago and has lived at the zoo since. Zookeepers say his genes, mixed with Chaska’s, make this baby extra special.

“Having wild genes and being the first wild born Andean bear in a zoo in the U.S. to reproduce would represent a whole new gene pool for the captive breeding program,” Caleb Oliver, a zookeeper, said.

Oliver says the baby will likely begin wandering out of the den around Spring time, and that’s when the public will be able to see it.