Sun bears at Edinburgh Zoo
Edinburgh Zoo has two sun bears named Somnang and Rotana. They came to live at Edinburgh Zoo in 2010.
Somnang and Rotana are brothers, and are approximately six years old. The boys are great friends and spend most of their time snoozing together and foraging for fruit and nuts.
Rotana, a popular modern Cambodian name, gets very excited, searching high and low to sniff out hidden goodies.
Somnang, meaning Lucky, takes things more slowly, usually meandering after Rotana who has put in the ground work.
They love nothing more than rolling around on their backs, licking honey and wrestling together in their swimming pool.
Where it can be found at the Zoo
The new sun bear home is situated at the old polar bear site in the middle of the Zoo, where several enclosures have been combined into a new purpose-built exhibit almost three times its original size. You can see our sun bears in their enclosure on our live sun bear cam!
Sun bears in the wild
Known for the crescent-shaped patch of fur on its chest that resembles the rising sun, the sun bear (Helarctos malayanus) is found primarily in the tropical rainforests of Southeast Asia.
It’s the smallest member of the bear family at around four foot in length, has large feet that turn slightly inward and long, curved claws that assist with climbing and digging.
It has small, rounded ears, a broad muzzle and an extremely long tongue which it uses to extract honey and insects from inside trees.
Sun bears are the rarest species of bear on the planet, classified as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN Red List. Their numbers face serious threat in the wild due to rapid destruction of a habitat continuously logged for hard timber products, as well as from the illegal wildlife trade.
You can help us protect endangered species like the Sun Bear by donating to our Sun Bears appeal! Please click on the honey jar to make your donation today.
Breeding programme category: ESB
IUCN Red List category: Vulnerable