Officials at a zoo in China found themselves in a bizarre public relations situation on Monday when they had to issue a statement insisting that a bear inside an enclosure was actually a real bear and not a person in a bear costume.
A viral video showing a black sun bear standing upright and striking a very human-like pose led to many people believing the zoo was tricking park visitors. Doubters especially pointed out the appearance of pleats on the animal’s backside which resembled bunched clothing. Zoo officials have responded to the rumors and flatly denied that it’s a human in a bear costume. They said the supposed pleats on the bear’s backside is just a normal part of the sun bear’s anatomy. The statement added that with the temperature at the zoo that day reaching 104 degrees, it would have been way too hot for a human to have survived all day in a bear suit.
WATCH: 🐻 A viral video of a black sun bear at the Hangzhou Zoo in China's Zhejiang province has some netizens convinced that it is a human in disguise. The zoo has since spoken out to quell the rumours, maintaining that it is "definitely a real animal". pic.twitter.com/hzHOZSnLPT
— TODAY (@TODAYonline) July 31, 2023