The curators observed Sola for several hours and then seeing that she was eating and drinking as she should, decided to release her into the Wild Enclosure the very next day. Like all bear cubs, Sola did not like being in a cage environment, and needed to be outside in the natural habitat.
Curator Janet threw some grapes outside of the gate, and then remotely opened it so Sola could get out. She did not hesitate! She ate the grapes, foraged a bit for food on the ground, checked out the natural-looking dens, and then headed straight to a tree for safety.
She settled herself in the tree.
She found some insects on the branch, and promptly licked them off.
When Sola entered the Wild Enclosure, the 5 cubs already there – Bonnie Blue, Ridgeway, Marvin, Carter, and Noli – quickly climbed their own trees, so there was no interaction. We’ll wait to see if the 6 cubs become friends in time. So far, Bonnie Blue, Ridgeway, and Marvin are a tight group, playing and foraging together. Carter and Noli do not socialize with them but sometimes share a tree themselves and occasionally forage together. It will be interesting to watch how the social interactions (or non-interactions) develop.