Tokyo Zoo Mistook Female Polar Bear for a Male

Zookeepers at Kushiro Municipal Zoo in Tokyo, Japan, had the surprise of their life, when they noticed that the bear they took care of for more than 4 years was actually a female, instead of a male, as the medical certificate said. The cream-colored animal lived with his designated pair – another female – for all these years, and seemed to get along fine, until, one day, the wardens noticed that the two urinated in the same manner, which is highly unusual for them.
 

"We thought he was a male, so we never had any doubts as we took care of him. But one day we realized that the two bears urinate in the same way, and we thought, is that how males do it? And once we started to look at things that way, we weren't quite so sure. We do have mixed feelings," explained a puzzled Masako Inoue, one of the zookeepers, on Wednesday.
 

She added that "(...) because Tsuyoshi was supposed to be a male, she came here, and because she came here, we were able to take care of her since she was very small." The baby bear was brought to the zoo when its life was endangered, and the people there took good care of it. The papers said that the bear was a male, and no one bothered to check to see if that was true after that, until the accidental sighting.
 

The news, though funny, means that the other female polar bear is still without a mate. This prompted zoo officials to begin looking around for other options, as captive polar bears of breeding age are difficult to come by. The faith of Tsuyoshi is still under debate, but she will most likely remain at the same zoo, which means that 2 males will now be required.
 

In order to confirm what the keepers saw, veterinarians had to perform a DNA test, as well as a manual investigation. Mistaking a male polar bear for a female and vice versa is not uncommon in zoos, as their long fur makes examinations difficult. Plus, in this case, the animal was very young, and even the keenest of eyes wouldn't have counted for anything.