Sea World’s polar bear cub Mishka celebrates Christmas on the Gold Coast

POLAR bear cub Mishka and her mum Liya are getting into the festive spirit by unwrapping some presents ahead of Christmas.

POLAR bear cub Mishka and her mum Liya are getting into the festive spirit by unwrapping some presents ahead of Christmas.

The eight-month-old cub will celebrate her first Christmas at Sea World’s Polar Pre-School exhibit.

Sea World curator of mammals Mitchell Leroy said the Christmas experience would form part of Mishka and Liya’s enrichment program.

POLAR BEAR MISHKA TAKES HER FIRST SWIM

Polar bear mum and cub celebrate Christmas at Sea World.

SEA WORLD POLAR BEAR CUB MAKES PUBLIC DEBUT

“We have decorated the Polar Pre-School exhibit with specially created Christmas presents and an array of Mishka and Liya’s favourite treats, toys and food,” he said.

“The exhibit here at Sea World offers one of the world’s best enrichment programs and occasions such as Christmas provide a wonderful opportunity for our Bears to experience a range of different smells and textures.

Polar bear cub Mishka and her mum Liya.

“Mishka is continuing to grow significantly in size and is now weighing roughly 60 kilograms and has started eating a range of solid foods including fish, beef and pork.”

He said the polar bears at Sea World were ambassadors for their species and played a vital role in raising awareness of the effects of global warming.

Current research indicates that polar bear numbers in the wild are declining with 20,000 — 25,000 bears remaining worldwide.

Polar bear mum Liya celebrates Christmas at Sea World.

Polar bear cub Mishka and her mum Liya.