The El Paso Zoo and Botanical Gardens has been home to sun bears for over 50 years.  When I first visited the Zoo in 1974 sun bears lived in the Americas area of the Zoo before moving to their new exhibit in the Asia area in 1997.   Breeding in zoos has been very unsuccessful and as a result fewer zoos have them which means when the day comes that our 28-year old female Heliana is no longer with us, she may be the last one zoo goers in El Paso will see for a very long time.  

In the wild sun bears live in the forests and shrublands of Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.  Taxonomists recognize two subspecies with the sun bears on Borneo being different from those on the Asia mainland and Sumatra.   Currently sun bear are listed as vulnerable by the IUCN, but no one really knows for sure how many survive in the wild since estimating their numbers in dense forest habitat is extremely difficult.

In addition to habitat loss one of the main threats to sun bears and bears in other parts of the world is commercial hunting for their gall bladders.  Sun bears are commonly poached for their gall bladders where the bile is used as a Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).  There is also a market for their paws which are considered an expensive delicacy.

To help sun bears in the wild the Zoo encourages you to learn more about them by reading articles online and supporting rescue centers in Asia and other organizations working to protect habitat like the World Wildlife Fund. 

The best time of the day to see our sun bear is to visit the Zoo when we first open and our female Heliana is most active.   This beautiful animal and her zoo neighbors including Sumatran orangutans, Malayan tigers, Malayan tapirs and Asian elephants, are important ambassadors for rainforest conservation in Southeast Asia.   When you come to the Zoo and enjoy seeing our animals in Asia we hope that you will be inspired to support efforts to help them in the wild.

Rick LoBello, Education Curator