The Toledo Zoo has finally revealed the genders of the twin polar bear cubs born in late 2022 to Crystal as part of a breeding program.
In a Facebook post Friday, the Toledo Zoo in Ohio announced the cubs were both males. The zoo wrote: ‘Brrrrrrreaking news!!! Before Nuka’s departure, he helped reveal the cubs’ genders with an enrichment activity provided by our keepers. The cubs will need names, so stay tuned for their naming contest!’
The cubs were born to 23-year-old polar bear Crystal as a part of a breeding program.
Those involved in the program had been hoping for one cub, but they got two.
The male polar bear who sired the twins, Nuka, 17, originally from Detroit Zoo, was relocated to another zoo late February as a part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Species Survival Plan.
The two cubs are Crystal’s eighth and ninth. They are expected to appear in front of zoo visitors later this spring
In the video, to reveal the gender of the cubs, a soaking wet Nuka approaches a tub with ‘Boy’ and ‘Girl’ written on it.
He takes the tubs into the water, holding it with his jaws.
Two blue objects fall from the container, indicating that the cubs are two boys.
The two are seen in the care of their mother and playing with each other in the video.
The smaller cub was 14 pounds and the larger one was 19 pounds.
Pictured: Crystal. The zoo will hold a naming contest for the two cubs
In the video announcement, Michael Frushour, the zoo’s curator of mammals, said of the the gender test: ‘It’s a really quick exam. We kind of get our hands on them. Get a quick vet check with the veterinarian. He’ll sex check them to find out their gender. Then we give them right back to momma as soon as possible.’
He said once they ‘get easier on their feet’, they will go out to the pool ‘to see water for the first time’ and take a dip in it.
The two cubs are Crystal’s eighth and ninth.
They are expected to appear in front of zoo visitors later this spring.
The zoo will hold a naming contest for the two cubs.
Earlier this year, zoo officials had asked community members to guess the genders of the cubs.
In a Facebook post Thursday, it was revealed that out of 2,978 votes, 17 per cent expected twin girls, 71 per cent guessed one boy and one girl, and 12 per cent guessed the cubs were twin boys.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk