Can everyone go and give Gus the polar bear a little love this week? The Central Park Zoo bear lost the love of his life, Ida, last week, and he's already been depressed enough in the past, being dubbed the "bipolar bear." Now CityRoom reports that Gus is all alone, and and expert tells them, “For any animal that forms a close bond with another one, there would be some sense of loss.” Ida was his companion for 24 years.
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Results tagged “polarbear”
Is Gus The Widowed Central Park Polar Bear Sad?
Ida The Central Park Polar Bear Dies At 25
Sad news came in late yesterday as it was announced that Ida, one of the Central Park Zoo's polar bears, was euthanized Friday at age 25 (allegedly living 7 years longer than a polar bear in the wild). She had been in the park since 1987, after being born at the Buffalo Zoo upstate. She had been suffering from a cancer-related liver disease.
Christmas Comes Early For Central Park Polar Bear
It's Winterfest time at the Central Park Zoo. The annual winter-themed holiday program features thousands of twinkling lights, festive greenery... and giant polar bears tearing presents to shreds! The fest will run the first three Fridays and Saturdays in December, during which time the zoo will be open until 6:30 p.m.; visitors can expect to see snow leopards, polar bears, and penguins receiving gifts on those days. Spoiler alert: inside each wrapped box are fishsicles and fruit! More details here.
Ruby's Bar Not Dead Yet, Will Open on New Years Day
According to an email and this post on the Coney Island message board, the annual post-Polar Bear swim party at Ruby's Bar on the boardwalk will proceed, despite escalating fears that the beloved dive would close. On Christmas Eve, a large number of businesses on the boardwalk were plastered with "For Lease" signs by Thor Equities, which owns much of the property on Coney Island and is locked in tough negotiations with the city over the make-up of a proposed upscale hotel and amusement project.
Coney Island Polar Bears Welcome 2008 With a Splash
Many hearty souls joined the Welcome to Coney Island Polar Bear Club for the annual New Year's Day dip into the Atlantic. Lucky for us, some Gothamist readers were on the scene and have taken some great photographs. Here are a few.
Coney Island Polar Bears Swimming in Money from Thor
Their day in the sun ocean is just around the corner, but the Polar Bear Club of Coney Island may be in too deep with one donation they recently accepted. The Brooklyn Paper reports that in spite of the club "growling in the anti-Thor procession during the Mermaid Parade," the Polar Bears have "made peace" with Thor.
Video of the Day: Coney Island Polar Bears are Freezin' for a Reason
This year, the Coney Island Polar Bear Club really heated things up in their online video which features two topless ladies (backs turned to camera)! Will you make the plunge this New Years Day? Register or make a donation (money goes to Camp Sunshine) at Freezin' for a Reason. If you do participate, be warned, the water is usually around 33° degrees when the annual dip is made -- though they say "no member has...
Bachelorette Pad
The areas being renovated include an Italian garden of boxwoods and roses; the Rockefeller Fountain, which has provided a welcome spritzing to many of the two million annual visitors; and a suite of Beaux-Arts-style buildings considered to be the heart of the 265-acre zoo.more ›
Polar Bears Put New Members on Ice
After a man suffered fatal injuries during this New Year's swim, the Coney Island Polar Bear Club has announced it will not be accepting new members. Further, the membership of Bears-in-training (the "Cubs") will be frozen. Polar Bear club president Louie Scarella explained to the Daily News, "I closed the membership just to cut down the number of people in the water. It has broken my heart and the heart of the board to do this"
New Year's Swimmer Dies From Injuries
A 32 year old journalist who suffered a neck injury during this year's Polar Bear Club New Year's swim died last week. It's unclear how Mohan Seneviratne injured himself; some witnesses believe he hit a sandbar when he dove into the water at Coney Island. amNew York spoke to his father Dr. Upali Seneviratne who said that Seneviratne was initially stable after the severe spinal cord injury, but his "condition deteriorated over a few days.
"The information is sketchy. I don't know how it could happen. I don't know how he could sustain such a serious accident. I would like to find out how."Seneviratne was not a member of the Polar Bear Club, but one of the many people who join the swim on New Year's. Seneviratne had been working for Esquire as an online producer; he had also worked at MSNBC.com and graduated from Brown and Columbia Journalism School. eat drink one woman had an interview with Seneviratne about the food he ate.
Record Warmth Cools Polar Bear Passions
What's a polar bear to do when it is 72 in January? Well, if you're a member of the Coney Island Polar Bear Club, you stage a silent protest. The Times reports eight members of the club cancelled their Saturday swim, because the water was too warm. Perhaps more interestingly, the News reports it was nine members of the club and the Post says ten! According to Polar Bear Club treasurer Tom McGann, yesterday was the first time in more than a century that the club has cancelled a swim. Meanwhile, the News also reports that the real polar bears in the Central Park Zoo were largely unaffected by the warm weather.
Man Injured During Polar Bear Swim
Most New Year's Day Polar Bear Swims are just wacky fun, but yesterday, a Manhattan man was injured during the swim. Thirty-two year old Mohan Seneviruten suffered a neck injury and is in stable condition at Lutheran Hospital. His father arrived from Connecticut, asking, "What was he doing?" A witness told the Post, "It looked like he just dove head-first into a wave. When he didn't come up, people grabbed him." The Daily News described the water he dove into as shallow and Seneviruten was treated by paramedics on the beach. I
Polar Bears Head to Coney Island
And by polar bears, we mean the human Coney Island Polar Bear Club, of course! The intrepid Homo sapiens will be taking their New Year's dip today at 1PM.
Gothamist Random Cute of the Day
You thought we'd given up on the cute, eh? Left all that cute goodness those crazy kids who like to get so overloaded on the suff, eh? Well, for the most part you seem to be right. But then we get super adorable heads up tips like this video and what can we do? We share with you because we love.
Freezing Cold Polar Bear Insanity!
Looks like hundreds of people showed up for the Polar Bear Club's annual New Year's Day plunge in Coney Island. Great photos can be found in Flickr's ConeyIsland stream, and in photosets by YouCanSleepWhenYou'reDead, HollyP, and LittleBill (who shot the picture above.) The Post reports that the air temperature was in the low 30s-- anyone have a first-hand account of freezing your balls/ta-tas off?
Gus the Formerly Depressed Polar Bear
A colleague of mine was telling me how she would be going to the Central Park Zoo over the weekend, and I asked her to let me know how Gus the Polar Bear was doing. She said I was the fourth person to mention Gus. Who is Gus? Gus is a polar bear who was famously diagnosed as being depressed, as he swam incessantly in the pool. Gus is better nowadays - thanks for various new stimulation, including a special pool. His depression and concern for animals in captivity have made zookeepers acknowledge and try to address how to make zoos better living environments for animals.
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