Meet Anana and Aurora. They are two of the biggest attractions at the Columbus Zoo.
"We've got two 4-year-old polar bears that put on quite a show," said zookeeper Dan Nellis. "They love the water and they love mixing it up with the kids. The kids get right up onto the glass and they can get five inches from a polar bear. Where else can you do that, but here?"
Here means the North America Polar Frontier exhibit at the Columbus Zoo. Whether they know it or not, these polar bears are the stars of the show, ONN's Jessa Goddard reported.
"I mean there's nothing like a 500 pound belly flop," Nellis said. "It just sends water everywhere. Fish too."
The polar bears swim and dive to the delight of the crowd and if the opportunity presents itself they grab a snack when they can.
"The polar bears are in some pretty big trouble right now with their habitat melting the way it is. It's a direct result of the global warming and the CO2 that's in the air. We are focusing on reducing our carbon footprint," Nellis said.
The zoo conserves energy using a state-of-the-art geothermal heating and cooling unit to control the water temperature in the 167,000 gallon saltwater pool. They use no harsh chemicals and have planted more than 700 trees at the exhibit.
The twin polar bear sisters share the exhibit with two twin brother Brown Bears named Brutus and Buckeye.
At 7-years-old, the big boys stand eight-feet-tall and weigh more than 1,000 pounds.
"Oh, yeah, they're a blast," Nellis said. "They pick on kids that are wearing certain colors. Purple seems to be a good one."
You may wonder how zookeepers keep these bears cool when the weather is so hot. The saltwater pool is kept at a comfortable 64 degrees, and the animals have 24-hour access to air conditioned dens.
However, it's the treats that really do the trick, Goddard reported.
"Fish-cicles," Nellis said. "We have a lot of fish-cicles. Blood-cicles are good too. Anything with fish or meat in it they really like."
Fish-cicles aren't on the menu for visitors, but a full day of fun is for the thousands of people making their way through the Polar Frontier.
Beyond the polar bears, you'll also get to see Alaskan brown bears and arctic foxes.
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