Knut, Berlin Zoo's famous polar bear, dies at age 4

Knut, the polar bear who charmed millions as an adorable cub when a Berlin zookeeper hand-raised him after he was rejected by his mother, died Saturday. He was 4 years old.

Knut was reportedly alone in an outdoor enclosure -- he shared the space with three other bears, including his mother Tosca, all of whom were inside at the time -- when he "strolled around the enclosure, went into the water, had a short spasm and died," Heiner Kloes, a bear keeper at the Berlin Zoo, told the Associated Press.

Zoogoers watched in horror until zoo staff fenced off the enclosure from view. "Everybody was asking, 'What's going on, why is Knut not moving?' " visitor Camilla Verde recalled to the AP. "All the zookeepers who put up the fences were so very sad. One of them said, 'He was our baby.' "

His exact cause of death is unknown, and a necropsy -- an animal autopsy -- is expected to be performed Monday. His death is especially troubling because of his young age. At 4, he was still essentially a teenager in human terms and hadn't even reached his adult weight or sexual maturity yet. 

For a seemingly healthy polar bear to die at age 4 is "a little bit surprising," Peter Ewins, an arctic species specialist for the World Wildlife Fund, told ABC News. "In captivity, polar bears can live longer than in the wild; to 25 or 30. Even more than 30 years old because they're not exposed to the elements and hard realities of life in the wild."

Fans of the famous bear -- who celebrated his 4th birthday with a large party and a cake shaped like the number 4 in December -- flocked to the Berlin Zoo after the news of his death, many leaving cards, flowers and stuffed animals at a makeshift memorial, the AP reported. 

Thomas Doerflein, the keeper who raised Knut after his mother refused to care for him, died of a heart attack at age 44 in 2008.

A custody battle between the Berlin Zoo and another German zoo, the Neumünster Zoo, was resolved in 2009 with the former zoo agreeing to pay about $600,000 to the latter zoo in exchange for an agreement that Knut would remain in Berlin. Because Knut's father Lars was a resident of Neumünster, the zoo had argued that it was entitled to a portion of Berlin's Knut-related profits.

MORE ABOUT KNUT'S LIFE:
• Knut the polar bear meets his future roommate, gets slapped (2009)
• Knut, beloved polar bear, has a run-in with a fan (2008)

-- Lindsay Barnett

Top photo: Knut at his first public appearance at the Berlin Zoo on March 23, 2007. Credit: Markus Schreiber / Associated Press

Bottom photo: Keeper Thomas Doerflein and Knut in March 2007. Credit: Herbert Knosowsi / Associated Press

Comments

[Heather VanErman]

Knut will be remembered and his lost will be morned. Knut was an amazing, cute, loving polar bear. Thomas, I hope that you are doing well in this tragic death of your loved polar bear. You will be in our prayers.

[Jorge]

oh no! Knut...i loved this lil guy....especially his awesome song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNWrFmCCfXw

[dinda]

Sooo cuteee, does he have any siblings ?

[love knut]

Rest In Peace, sweet baby bear.

[julie]

Ohhhhh, that makes me very sad. RIP, Knut, you were well loved the world over.

[Renee]

If I was in a zoo for 4 years, I'd probably die suddenly too. So sad.

[Pablito]

I has a sad :-(

[littlebadwolfl]

A wonderful creature, but, perhaps, the mother had cause to reject her twin cubs. It is possible that Tosca 'knew' they would have health problems.

[me.yahoo.com/a/U2ryJ7sxi_iz8S427GCLANTfx.s0]

Perhaps this is why his mother may have rejected him? She knew he would never reach maturity, so why invest that time in him?

Mother Nature, a pithy one, She.

[jay]

Maybe he wasn't supposed to live and had other problems and his mom sensed it and then rejected that cub?

[gwlin]

I feel very very sad with Knut's sudden death. I hope that Knut's body will be stuffed and put in a museum because his short and sad life contributes a lot to the awareness of the plight of polar bear in the wild. I hope his legacy will continue. Knut suffered all his life- he was rejected by his mother, then deprived of the love from his surrogate mother/father-TD and his cousin, Giovana after they left him. I wish Knut can rest in peace now. I am glad that he had a quite quick death without unnecessary prolonged sufferings

[michaelle]

This news is SO sad. Worse still, is that his last moment is being played all over the news. From the video of his last minutes, however, it is VERY obvious that Knut is experiencing a seizure or some neurological issue before his disorientation leads to his plunge into the water. Even though he is a polar bear, I don't understand why no one came to his aid! If I were his caretaker and witnessed his behavior, I would have immediately put him into a controlled care environment (where his impediments would not have put him in harms way as was the case in a rocky enclosure with open water). I think that the necropsy will show he drowned (since he plummeted into the water in a haze) but that is likely not what caused his impairment that ultimately led to his untimely death. Very sad!

[Robert Dorff]

The passing of KNUT should remind us of hundreds of his endangered kin perishing in the Arctic meltdown. Many of them expire after swiming several hundred miles searching for firm ice to land on. Attention must be paid.

rdorff

[Dale Mickelson]

From the description above, sounds like electrocution. Hopefully someone has checked the water.

[AndreaU8]

What sad news! I remember all the Knut items I saw all over Germany back in 2007.

[sj]

Oh so young this is really a loss for the world. I am in the US and still this little guy stoled my. The care takers must be devistated. My heart goes out to everyone who loved this wonderful creature of God.

[Brian Jones]

Awww..Poor baby..
They are such beautiful animals..

[JoeB1979]

awww but he was so cute! :(

[CyberCosmiX]

First the octopus that picked World Cup games dies, then a couple months laters Knut dies. Sadly, German zoo's aren't having the best of luck in upkeeping their star attractions. Can't help but think that maybe their competency over their isn't the best...

[Jeanie]

Awwww.....so sad. He was so adorable.... RIP little Knut....

[Baily]

I can not believe he died at such a young age!!! He was soooo cute!!!! Why did this have to happen to a 4 yr. old Polar Bear!!!! And at a age so young...........R.I.P Knut and have a safe journey..........

[Herp N. Derpington]

how's that war in afghanistan again?

[Linda]

I feel so very sad for Knut, but you can rest easy and know he did not suffer. It is obvious Knut suffers from epilesy. My dog has epilepsy and did not show any signs of it until he was four years old, he is a German Shorthair Pointer so basically he loves the water, and what happened to Knut has been my fear for Hans. This video was shown on TV and it caught me off gaurd I would never had watched it other wise, I broke out in tears, because that is exactly what Hans looks like when the seizure starts. Knut would not have know what happened to him, once the seizure starts it lasts at least 2 - 3 minutes, and he was unaware.

[Joan]

Pretty sad. The brain disease was more than likely genetic. One autopsy report revealed water in his lungs. No one could have done anything. It all happened so fast. It's just how life works. A lot of times life sucks. Why bad things happen is the undending question. You just hope they are in a better place now. He brought a lot of people much joy and made some people care about the plight of wildlife. Nothing wrong with that. In a perfect world we would not need zoos or wildlife sanctuaries but since we are not in a perfect world zoos are necessary to educate the public, bring them close to and fall in love with and care what happens to an animal and the rest of its species. Most zoos have come a long way in giving these animals a great quality of life and natural surroundings. It's not perfect but it is necessary. On average most animals in zoos live longer in captivity then they would have lived in the wild.

[Allen Nyhuis]

Wow, I've devastated by this news! I saw Knut for myself in Berlin and he was adorable -- even as an adult bear. There's a picture of Knut (along with Newt Gingrich, who wrote our Foreword) in our book -- it was "Knut and Newt". Let's all remember that IF the animal rights extremists had gotten their way, Knut would have been dead 4 years ago. They wanted "nature to take its course" and kill him. But the great Berlin Zoo stepped in to save Knut, and he got 4 happy years in the Zoo.

Allen Nyhuis, Coauthor: America's Best Zoos

[michelle]

I have a dog that has seizures regularly and sometimes I wonder if it will be his last. When he has them he goes into a state of unconsciousness, they last from anywhere 5 minutes to a half an hour, we basically ride it out. My dog has been having them for years, god forbid if he had been left in water, he would have drowned. It's to bad someone could not of pulled Knut from the water.

I've read that Knut would have died anyways, totally disagree with that assumption, I think that is incorrect.

[gregory]

that sucks he was so cute

[Dianne]

Bless his heart. May the germanic goddess of the bears hold him dear and give him the love he never received from his mother. Dianne Ross in San Antonio, Texas