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POLAR BEAR

Berlin polar bear cub Fritz dies, sending animal lovers into mourning

First pictures of polar bear cub Fritz, born at the Tierpark zoo last autumn, already had animal-lovers swooning. But the Berlin zoo made a sad announcement on Tuesday.

Berlin polar bear cub Fritz dies, sending animal lovers into mourning
Fritz appears before the camera in February. Photo: DPA

The cub died due to a liver inflammation just four months after his birth, Tierpark director Andreas Knieriem said on Tuesday.

“We’re stunned, very sad and depressed. It’s unbelievable how quickly we fell in love with this little bear,” he said.

Fritz was born to seven-year-old female Tonja and five-year-old Wolodja, and was the first polar bear cub born in Berlin’s Tierpark in 22 years.

Since his birth on November 3rd, Fritz hadn’t yet ventured outside of the enclosure where his mother had cared for him. In video released by the zoo in December, Fritz could be seen trying to take his first steps.

At the weekend zookeepers first noticed that something was wrong with the cub. He was lethargic and by Monday seemed to have little energy left at all.

After a crisis meeting involving veterinarians and zookeepers, the cub was separated from his mother and taken for tests at a nearby clinic. The examination brought up little concrete, but the little cub was given a special antibiotic due to a poor liver function reading.

As they day wore on though, his condition worsened. By Monday evening his breathing had become uneven. Emergency procedures did nothing to improve the situation, and at around 8pm the frail cub stopped breathing and died.

This isn’t the first time that the premature death of polar bear has left Berlin animal lovers in mourning.

In 2011 the beloved polar bear Knut died at the age of four at the Zoologischer Garten.

Knut had become an international celebrity, even appearing on the cover of Vanity Fair magazine, after his mother rejected him and he was raised by a zookeeper.

An autopsy was being carried out on Fritz on Tuesday morning.

“Fritz did not make it,” said top-selling Bild daily on its online homepage and in a tweet.

“So sad to hear that Berlin's baby polar bear Fritz passed away,” tweeted English Choir Berlin.

The chancellery joined in the mourning, with Angela Merkel's chief of staff Peter Altmaier attaching Bild's tweet and adding: “Anyone who remembers little Knut is sad. But above all, we must protect polar bears in nature!”

PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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