We fawned over him as a baby, rooted for him to find love, sympathized when he lost his caretaker, and celebrated birthdays with him. But our favorite polar bear, Knut, passed away on Saturday.
Most polar bears can live for up to 30 years in captivity, but Knut was only four when he died; zoo officials aren't yet sure what caused his death. We'll miss following his adventures, but for now, let's take a look back at some of our favorite Knut moments.
It's Time For Knut to Mate! Apparently, this requires more room than his current zoo allows. So the world's most famous polar bear might be looking for new digs.
The German language has many virtues. Its sentences can be long, allowing you to ramble, there appears to be a noun for every state of being you could dream up, and you can speak and clear your throat of phlegm at the same time. But folks, "cute" is usually not how you'd describe it. Until now. Here's a cute children's ode to the adorable tyke. His original caretaker, Thomas Dorflein, recently passed away (sad!), but we can celebrate one of his major accomplishments: Knut!
Great find, DListed!
You remember Knut the cute, right? Sadly this Polar Bear will have to celebrate his next birthday (come December) without his famous caretaker, Thomas Doerflein. The selfless German zookeeper that cared for one of the world's most recognizable creatures passed away this week – I've taken the time to honor his life with the bear in this slideshow.
Ever since Knut became the object of public fascination a year ago, vids of adorable baby polar bears have proliferated across the net. But these babes grow up fast and, especially in Knut's case, we see their more aggressive (teenager much?) instincts take over. Can these teddies be trusted as adults? There's a "nonpartisan" group that doesn't think so and they'll tell you why. . .
Remember Flocke? She's no longer the itty-bitty-teddy we met three months ago. Girlfriend's grown up and she's strutting her stuff. Watch Flocke stomp around in unfamiliar territory and then clean up after a tough day's work— being this cute ain't easy, you know? (Let's hope this fame doesn't go to her head as it did for someone else we know. . .)
Look familiar? She should. Not too long ago, we watched Flocke (German for snowflake) sleep and snore away her first few weeks in a Nuremberg zoo. She's grown up a bit and can now lift her own head — to take a long, hard stare at her adorable self in the mirror, natch. With those itty-bitty teddy ears, I don't blame her.
Remember the sleepy polar bear we met last week? Well, the photos didn't reveal that this month-old little gal is quite the energetic napper. She fidgets, she snores, and when a nightmare strikes, her little paws pick up the pace. Who could she possibly be running from? Eh, take your pick.
This little polar bear looks mighty tuckered out. Maybe the sequence was: eat and then nappy time. Or perhaps, nappy time, and then eat. Does it really matter, though? Cute is cute. (The tongue, oh the tongue!) Thanks for the send, Flippy!
