news-record.com

ASHEBORO - A polar bear that has been on loan to the Cleveland Zoo will soon return to the N.C. Zoo, while another polar bear at the Asheboro zoo will be taken out of the exhibit to treat an infection.

Wilhelm, the N.C. Zoo's lone polar bear for the past two years, has been taken off view while undergoing treatments for an infection that cannot be administered while he has access to the exhibit pool, according to a news release. No timetable has been set for his return.

Aquila, a male polar bear on loan to the Cleveland Zoo, will be returning to Asheboro after an absence of more than six years. Zoo officials say 16-year-old Aquila could be on exhibit by early April if the transfer from Cleveland goes smoothly.

Wilhelm was one of six polar bears confiscated in November 2002 by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service from a circus traveling in Puerto Rico. Wilhelm, 24, and a second bear, Masha, were given a new home at the N.C. Zoo.

To make room for the two confiscated bears at the N.C. Zoo, Aquila was transferred first to the Louisville Zoo and later to Cleveland. Masha died in June 2007 from internal problems related to the inadequate care provided during his years in the circus.

Wilhelm, who also suffers from arthritis and other physical ailments related to age and his circus years, has been under treatment for a variety of problems over the past few months. Zoo veterinarians and animal staff this week decided that Wilhelm's recent development of a skin infection requires more frequent medical care than can be provided while he is on exhibit.