‘Human bear’ seen snacking at Chinese zoo as critics doubt she’s real
Angela the Malayan sun bear isn’t letting accusations that she’s not fur real bruin her good time — she’s doing whatever suits her.
In new photos obtained by The Post on Wednesday, the controversial creature that some suspect is actually a human in a bear costume can be seen adorably munching away on food and relaxing on a rock at the Hangzhou Zoo in China.
In one snap, the 4-year-old internet sensation is lying on her back, happily eating a cucumber, and in another, she can be spotted sweetly gripping a carrot.
A man presumed to be a zoo employee even came over to give Angela some watermelon and other treats in one photo.
But that’s not all — it looks like she had quite the busy day, as she also took a dip in the water, spent time with another bear, and interacted with zoo-goers, doing her signature standing move that raised eyebrows in the first place.
A sun bear only grows to be about half the size of an American black bear, per National Geographic.
The outlet explained that these bears are known for their “stocky, muscular build.” Males weigh up to 150 pounds and come in at 5 feet in length, slightly more than females.
A viral video of Angela at the Hangzhou Zoo sparked some wild rumors last week that she was actually a human. Many thought her stance on her hind legs and skin folds resembled a person.
She could even be seen waving to observers.
The local Hangzhou Daily first gave way to the attention, writing: “Because of the way they stand, some people online question whether they are ‘humans in disguise.’”
However, the zoo has denied these claims in a statement pretending to be from Angela.
“Some people think I stand like a person. It seems you don’t understand me very well,” the statement read.
A zoo spokesperson debunked the rumor by saying a human would simply get too hot in the suit, with summer temperatures soaring to 100 degrees.
“If a person did wear a bear costume, they would be lying down within minutes due to the heat,” the rep said.
And, this week, managers of Paradise Wildlife Park in Hertfordshire, England, showed their support for the Chinese zoo by posting footage of their own sun bears.
“We can confirm that Kyra is a sun bear,” the facility stated on Instagram.
“Sun bears might look human when they stand, but they actually have the natural behavior of standing on their hind feet.”
