Como Park Zoo & Conservatory has a new resident.

Astra, a female polar bear, swims in her enclosure at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, Wash. on Aug. 14, 2023. She was moved on Oct. 9, 2025, to Como Park Zoo & Conservatory in St. Paul. (Katie G. Cotterill / Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium)

Astra, a four-year-old, 700-pound female polar bear, arrived Thursday night from Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma, Wash.

Upon arrival, the zoo announced, Astra entered a mandatory quarantine period behind the scenes, but the zoo hopes to give Astra access to the deep-water exhibit in Polar Bear Odyssey as early as this weekend.

Her timeline will depend on how she adjusts and Como Zoo has not yet announced a date for Astra’s public debut. Guests are encouraged to follow Como Park Zoo & Conservatory on Facebook, Instagram, and X for updates on when she will first be visible to visitors.

Astra’s addition

Astra’s move, the zoo explains, is part of a comprehensive plan rolled out by members of the Polar Bear Population Alliance, a new consortium of Association of Zoos and Aquariums-accredited organizations working together to maintain a sustainable and genetically diverse polar bear population in the United States.

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“Astra’s move to Como was recommended by the alliance to pair her with Kulu, Como’s 5-year-old male polar bear, as part of a long-term breeding effort aimed at supporting the future of this threatened species,” the zoo’s announcement explains. “The pairing brings together two genetically valuable bears whose potential match offers hope for future cubs at Como Zoo.”

Senior Zookeeper Allison Jungheim, who serves on the alliance’s management group as well as the polar bear program leader and studbook keeper for all polar bears in North America, says there are 56 polar bears in human care in North America, with 37 of them in the United States.

Besides Kulu and Astra, that population includes two other Como bears: Neil, a 29-year-old male, and Nan, a 30-year-old female.

Astra is owned by the Toledo Zoo but she and her twin sister, Laerke, were born at the Detroit Zoo on Nov. 17, 2020. While Laerke remains in Tacoma, Astra’s latest transfer, Jungheim says, represents the zoo community’s collaborative efforts to create a sustainable population.

“When breeding season comes,” says Jungheim of the months to come, “hopefully Kulu and Astra will breed and make beautiful babies together.”

FedExed

It was a big undertaking to get a bear as big as Astra across the country.

“It took awhile to coordinate a move of this magnitude,” Jungheim says. “Polar bears are not small animals and at 700 pounds she’s a big girl and needed a big crate suitable for air travel across the country.”

Fortunately, the journey went well: Because Tacoma had previously introduced her to the crate, Astra went into it willingly (no anesthesia required) at 2 a.m. on Thursday and was soon aboard a FedEx flight, accompanied by a Tacoma zookeeper and a Como Zoo veterinarian.

Astra did better on her cross-country journey, with one layover, than some of us humans do.

“She was great on the entire trip,” says Jungheim. “She ate some food on her layover in Memphis — she had some fish and other treats — and unloaded beautifully into our quarantine space, she walked right out.

“So far, so good,” Jungheim said on Friday. “She’s settling in to her quarantine area, investigating her new space and seems calm and content.

“We’re really excited to have her, she’s a great addition.”

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