Polar bear brothers Hudson and Humphrey leave Winnipeg today
Assiniboine Park Zoo said goodbye to pair with treats and a giant card
Hudson and Humphrey are flying back to Toronto today, after Winnipeggers bid a fond farewell to the polar bear pair at the Assiniboine Park Zoo over the long weekend.
The now-adult brothers are moving on Tuesday back to the Toronto Zoo, where they were both born and raised until they came to Winnipeg when they were 15-month-old cubs — Hudson in 2013 and Humphrey in 2015.
Zoo staff are in the process of loading the bears into crates that will be loaded into a cargo plane. They will depart overnight, landing in Toronto early Wednesday morning, a zoo spokesperson said.
"This isn't a simple process. It's not like buying a ticket and the bear gets on a plane seat," said Janice Martin, one of the curators at the Assiniboine Park Zoo.
"We need all our permits in place. We need to make sure that the planes are ready to go. We've got crates ready for them, so it's just a matter of putting the bears in the crates, transferring them to the airport, they go into the cargo plane and off they go."
Zoo staff have been training Humphrey and Hudson to become accustomed to the crates they'll stay in during their flight, and hopefully they won't have to be sedated as a result, Martin said.
Visitors say goodbye
On Monday, Assiniboine Park Zoo staff treated Humphrey and Hudson to pumpkin and ice treats as a crowd of visitors stopped by the Journey to Churchill exhibit, where they have been living, to sign a giant goodbye card and see the bears one last time.
"This was our first time visiting, so we we're glad we could see them before they left," Brendan Guse said at the zoo.
Taylor Butcher said she will especially miss Hudson because he shares the same name as her baby brother.
"His name is Hudson, and because Hudson's been here longer than any of the other polar bears, we think, and he's our favourite out of all the polar bears," she said.
Monday's sendoff capped 10 days of farewell festivities for Hudson and Humphrey.
Hudson came to the Assiniboine Park Zoo from Toronto in January 2013; he was one of the first polar bears to live at the zoo's Journey to Churchill exhibit.
He was also the first polar bear at the Winnipeg zoo since Debby, who was the world's oldest polar bear, died in 2008 at the age of 42.
- Hudson the polar bear arrives in Winnipeg
- Humphrey the polar bear arrives at Assiniboine Park Zoo
- Winnipeg zoo's polar bears hang out together for 1st time
Humphrey, Hudson's younger sibling, also was born at the Toronto Zoo and arrived in Winnipeg in March 2015.
In addition to it being moving day, Tuesday is Hudson's fifth birthday. Humphrey will turn three on Nov. 9.
Martin said zoo staff who worked with Hudson and Humphrey are having a tough time saying goodbye to the bears, who greeted many guests and dignitaries during their time in Winnipeg.
- VIDEO | Watch Prince Charles feeding Hudson in 2014
- Winnipeg zoo buddies: Sean Ellis and Hudson the polar bear
- Sparkly polar bear poo shines a light on research at Winnipeg zoo
"There's been lots of tears, but we all knew from the beginning this was not their forever home," she said.
"We all knew that we had a job to accomplish and our staff have done an amazing job with that so, you know, there's tears, there's sadness, but also some pride in what they've accomplished."
As for what's next for Humphrey and Hudson, Martin said the brothers will join several other polar bears at the Toronto Zoo, including their mom.
"Hudson and Humphrey's mother is still there. They've got a very young bear, little Juno," she said, referring to a female cub born in November 2015.
"I'm not sure exactly what their plans are in the future, but these two are ready to be integrated with any bear, so we'll see. We're hopeful."
The pair's departure will create more room at the Assiniboine Park Zoo to house rescued polar bears from northern Manitoba, officials have said.
The Winnipeg zoo is still home to seven bears, all from the province's north: Storm, Aurora, Kaska, Blizzard and Star are at the Journey to Churchill exhibit, while cubs Eli and York are currently living in the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre, also located on the zoo grounds.