Como Zoo polar bears break in new digs

April 6, 2010 at 12:49PM
Who's watching whom? Buzz and Neil have migrated back to Como Zoo and are settling in at their Polar Bear Odyssey home in St. Paul's Como Park. The exhibit area, replicating the bears' northern Canada homeland, will open to the public on June 3.
Who’s watching whom? Buzz and Neil have migrated back to Como Zoo and are settling in at their Polar Bear Odyssey home in St. Paul’s Como Park. The exhibit area, replicating the bears’ northern Canada homeland, will open to the public on June 3. (Star Tribune/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

The bears are back in town.

Buzz and Neil, the Como Zoo polar bears who have been vacationing in Detroit for the past two years, have returned to St. Paul. They're not taking visitors until June 3, though.

The brothers need some time to get used to their spacious new home, Polar Bear Odyssey, which is about four times bigger than their old abode.

With native plantings, saltwater pool and rock outcroppings, the $15 million exhibit is intended to mimic a Hudson Bay ecosystem. There are two outdoor areas, as well as a large indoor complex.

Major construction was wrapped up over the winter.

Zoo staff accompanied the bears on the drive from Michigan to Minnesota.

The 14-year-old bears have been a popular attraction at Como since 2002.

For more information on the features of the Polar Bear Odyssey exhibit, go to www.comozooconservatory.org.

CHRIS HAVENS

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