Zoo cannot identify difference between male and female polar bears
source: http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/11/26/japan.bears/
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- tinfoilnirvana
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A 4-year-old polar bear sent to impregnate a female polar bear at a zoo in Kushiro was found to be female as well.
The municipal zoo in the city of Kushiro in Hokkaido brought in a polar bear cub three years ago. They named it Tsuyoshi, after the popular baseball outfielder Tsuyoshi Shinjo, and waited until it reached reproductive age.
In June, the zoo introduced Tsuyoshi to its resident bear, an 11-year-old female named Kurumi, and waited for sparks to fly.
But much to the disappointment of zookeepers, Tsuyoshi never made any amorous advances toward Kurumi.
Earlier this month, zookeepers put Tsuyoshi under anesthesia to get to the bottom of the matter. That's when they made their discovery: Tsuyoshi is a female.
Still, the Kushiro zoo plans to keep Tsuyoshi because he -- or rather, she -- has become immensely popular with visitors.
"I have rather mixed feelings, given the need for breeding, but Tsuyoshi is an idol for Kushiro," Yoshio Yamaguchi, head of the Kushiro zoo, told Japan's Kyodo news agency.
Tsuyoshi will even keep her name.
"We will not be changing it to 'Tsuyoko' since it is loved by citizens (by the current name)," Yamaguchi said.
"Ko" is a common suffix for a Japanese female name.
Meanwhile, Tsuyoshi's "brother," who was adopted by another zoo, has also turned out to be female, Kyodo
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gormlesstwat
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They belong on the ice cap which is disappearing at an alarming rate. The primary purpose of zoos is now to prolong the lives of endangered species in a controlled environment, they may become extinct completely in the wild but later reintroduced if succesful breeding programs are introduced, ie. one male meets one female. LOL
- 3 years ago
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gormlesstwat
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rainbowryan420
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this happens all the time
female animals need more testosterone (mainly for defending their young) and the amount of testosterone will make the animal grow a penis this penis doen't have any use at all
this has happened with a lot of pandas
and female hyenas have penises 90% of the time they need the testosterone because usually there are alpha females in hyena packs and they need to be aggressive - 3 years ago
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rainbowryan420
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J_Jammer [removed]
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rainbowryan420:
Does that mean that human females are not or cannot be as aggressive as human males?
- 3 years ago
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J_Jammer [removed]
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wierdobeardo
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rainbowryan420:
You get the comment of the day award, rainbowryan420.
- 3 years ago
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wierdobeardo
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rainbowryan420
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rainbowryan420:
well jammer, not necessarily but it does mean that female animals are more aggressive than female humans
and thanks weirdobeardo
- 3 years ago
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rainbowryan420
