About Us
The Background on Research Collaboration
Maruyama Zoo in Sapporo City is now collaborating with Canadian and Japanese researchers to strengthen awareness of climate change through the polar bear facilities.
In future, Maruyama Zoo is planning to work closely together with the Assiniboine Park Zoo. This bilateral polar research collaboration engages scientists and managers from Hokkaido, Japan and Manitoba, Canada to include the City of Sapporo, the Maruyama Zoo, EnVision Conservation, and Conservation Dimension Inc.
The Assiniboine Park Zoo
The Assiniboine Park Zoo’s Journey to Churchill exhibit is the most comprehensive zoological exhibit of its kind in the world. The exhibit’s expansive enclosures, pools, rugged landscapes, and shaded dens provide our polar bears with a stimulating environment inspired by their natural habitat and plenty of space for exercise, exploration, and socialization. Assiniboine Park Zoo is also home to the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre, an education, research, and transition facility that is the first home for polar bears before they are transitioned into Journey to Churchill.
Conservation and research programs at Assiniboine Park Zoo are aimed to support the betterment of animals in our care and to assist conservation efforts in the wild. Researchers at the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre are engaged in a number of exciting and valuable research projects that will continue to expand our collective knowledge and understanding of the amazing animals with whom we share our planet!
Having polar bears in our care provides an opportunity to validate non-invasive techniques and understand more about the fascinating biology of polar bears. One of many projects currently underway is investigating social play among wild polar bears which is not well understood. We use thermal imagery to measure the temperature changes that occur while polar bears are engaged in social play which tells us how much energy they are using. Polar bears in our care can participate in research projects that help us better understand their wild counterparts and allow us to validate and perfect new non-invasive methods.
Learn more about the Assiniboine Park Zoo
https://www.assiniboinepark.ca/