Just like most wild animals, Sun Bears tend to avoid humans.
However, despite that indeed thriving in the wild, many of them live in captivity. As a result, the animal can sometimes show human-like behavior.
This is what exactly happened in a zoo in Hangzhou, at the capital of China’s Zhejiang province.
In one incident, the bear stood up on its hind legs, and waved to visitors. In another footage, the bear is seen to have slender legs, and fur that folds.
Because these were all captured on camera, the videos and photos went viral on the web for a good reason.
People started wondering whether the bear is real or just a human in a bear costume. Some even accused the zoo of using a dog impostor
Some netizens even speculated that the zoo is scamming visitors to earn money.
In response to the viral videos and photos, the zoo was experiencing quite a public relation nightmare.
It has been forced to speak out.
In an public announcement, the zoo denied that one of its bears is actually a human in a costume.
"Some people think I stand like a person... It seems you don’t understand me very well,” the statement read.
“When it comes to bears, the first thing that comes to mind is a huge figure and astonishing power… But not all bears are behemoths and danger personified.”
Then in one other announcement, the zoo stated that "such deception" would not happen at a state-run facility, and that it ever a human is wearing a full bear suit, that a person "would not last more than a few minutes before collapsing," due to the heat.
And to finally put an end to all of the rumors, a zoo employee told a publication that arrangements were being made to allow reporters to go to the zoo to see the bear by themselves.
According to the zoo, the bear in question is named Angela, a four-year-old sun bear.
Experts also made deliver their thoughts.
All of them said that the bear in question is definitely a real bear, and that sometimes the breed can make the bears look a lot like people in costumes.
And speaking about the loose skin, it's said that it allows sun bears to "turn around in their skin" if they come into contact with violent predators.
At least one wildlife park shared a footage of sun bear that is standing on its hind legs, which it describes as a bid to showcase their natural behavior. It's also suggested that bears can sometimes stand upright in order to have a greater view of their surroundings, or to smell far-off objects.
The stance can also be used as an attempt to intimidate enemies, in which the bear will display its chest patch if felt threatened.
With that in mind, the virality of the standing bear ends.
But just like anything else that had their taste of internet virality, it's said that the zoo is experiencing an increased influx of visitors, many of which in particular, wanted to see the famous Angela.
This is confirmed by Hangzhou Zoo, which said that it sees a 30% spike in visitors since the first sun bear video went viral.
According to the director of the zoo, that over 20,000 tourists visiting the zoo in just one day.
Sun bears are shy and reclusive animals, and stay away from humans when it the wild. Because of this, sun bears near humans is a rare sighting.
It's even rarer for sun bears to attack humans. These animals only go offensive when they're provoked, injured, or with their cubs.
Because sun bears are omnivores, the smallest in the bear species, and that they can be pretty tamed, some people have kept them as pets.
It's worth noting that sun bears are intelligent animals.
In the past, one captive sun bear observed its keepers store sugar inside a cupboard locked by a key. When it leaned this, it later used its claw to fiddle and tinker with the lock to open it.
In a study published in 2019, it's found that sun bears can display skillful mimicry of facial expressions, with precision comparable to that seen in gorillas and humans.
It's suggested the the bears at the zoo, including Angela, have developed a habit of asking visitors for food, and that they know that standing upright can earn them more food.
