The bear necessities for a zoo? Having real animals.
Yet China’s Hangzhou Zoo recently had to confirm that their Malayan sun bears are just that after rumors surfaced that the animals are humans dressed in costumes. This need for clarification arose after a clip went viral on social media that showed footage of one of the zoo’s bears standing on what looked to be rather slender hind legs.
“Some people think I stand like a person,” the zoo said in a statement written from the perspective of Angela, the sun bear in question, on July 31, per the Associated Press. “It seems you don’t understand me very well.”
And in defending its bears, the zoo clarified some misconceptions about how the animals vary when it comes to different species.
“When it comes to bears, the first thing that comes to mind is a huge figure and amazing power,” the note continued. “But not all bears are behemoths and danger personified. We Malayan bears are petite, the smallest bear in the world.”
And it’s true—sun bears only stand at about 50 inches tall (about 4 feet) while on their hind legs and weigh about 55 to 143 pounds, while other species of bears, such as the grizzly bear, can weigh over 600 pounds and stand at 84 inches (7 feet).