Great Bear Wilderness – Brookfield Zoo’s most ambitious undertaking

Coming eye-to-eye with a 3-year-old, 770-pound polar bear is hardly an everyday experience. But getting acquainted with playful young Hudson – separated by a glass barrier – is part of the fun visitors can expect at Brookfield Zoo’s exhilarating new Great Bear Wilderness exhibit.

The Lake County Journal did that and more at a preview of the zoo’s 7.5-acre, $27.3 million attraction, which opens to the public Thursday, May 8.

Besides bears, other iconic North American animals showcased include wolves, bald eagles, bison and ravens.

“Some three years in the making, Great Bear Wilderness is a dream come true,” said Mike Brown, lead keeper of large carnivores at the zoo, who sang praises of the naturalistic habitat that allows the animals to romp on a hilly terrain of dirt and grass, rather than in a concrete enclosure.

Viewing windows allow for easy observation of polar bears and grizzlies as they take regular plunges in two of three separate pools each containing between 78,000 and 80,000 gallons of water.

The bears stay underwater five or six minutes at a time and have a natural buoyancy above and below the surface.

Officials at the 75-year-old zoo predict that the new attraction will become an “instant hit” and boost attendance and revenues by 5 to 10 percent.

An underlying goal of the exhibit is to provide an enriching environment for the animals and to inspire people to help conserve, protect and restore wildlife.

In a statement, Stuart Strahl, CEO and president of the Chicago Zoological Society, which manages the zoo, said, “The conservation message is that through timely action, people can restore nature and even bring species back from the brink of extinction.”

Mexican gray wolves over the past 150 years were hunted to extinction in the wild, grizzly bear and bison populations were eliminated over 98 percent of their range in the lower 48 states and bald eagles were placed on the endangered species list. Meanwhile, the fate of polar bears, now considered vulnerable, is closely allied to climate changes.

But collaborative conservation efforts have helped to recover these species and their habitats. Bison are making a comeback in the Great Plains and grizzly bears in the northern Rocky Mountains, while Mexican gray wolves are being reintroduced to the southwest United States and Mexico.

Thanks to more restrictive pesticide laws and increased federal protection, bald eagles, the country’s national symbol, have recovered during the past three decades and no longer are regarded an endangered species.

Part of the development of Great Bear Wilderness also involved extensive landscaping. The terrain features hills, prairie, rock work, a waterfall and fallen trees as well as nearly 31,500 lush new plantings: trees, shrubs, prairie grasses, shrubs, perennials and groundcover.

Other amenities include the Bison Prairie Grill where diners can order traditional and nontraditional fare, including free-range bison burgers and bison chili, beer-battered cod, Texas-style pulled pork sandwiches and freshly made salads. In addition, there's the well-stocked Bear Crossing gift shop and a freestanding education center designed for classroom or meeting needs.
   
Tickets, please

What: Great Bear Wilderness
Where: Brookfield Zoo, 3300 Golf Road, in Brookfield
Cost: General admission for adults is $13.50; and seniors 65 and older and children 3 through 12 pay $9.50. The zoo is free on Tuesdays and Thursdays from October to December.
Parking: $9
Hours: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, with summer hours – Memorial Day to Labor Day – set at 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Sundays
Information: www.CZS.org