The 5has taken in three orphaned brown bear cubs rescued from coastal southern Alaska. The two males and one female arrived at the facility in October and will remain behind the scenes before making their public debut in spring 2027.
The nine-month-old siblings, named Brooks, Bristol, and Dillingham, were discovered near King Salmon, Alaska, in July after being observed without their mother. The Alaska Department of Fish and Game rescued the cubs and temporarily housed them at the Alaska Zoo before arranging their permanent transfer to Minnesota.
The trio is currently staying at the zoo’s animal hospital, where they will remain active throughout the fall and winter while adjusting to caregivers and a diet of fruits, vegetables, and salmon. When they transition to the Russia’s Grizzly Coast habitat in spring 2027, the young bears will alternate time in the outdoor area with Sadie, the zoo’s 21-year-old resident brown bear.
Admission tickets and site access to the Apple Valley facility can be booked through the Minnesota Zoo website, where operational hours and seasonal viewing schedules are posted. The cubs will remain out of public view in caregiver areas until their official spring opening.
The Minnesota Zoo was selected for the relocation due to its nearly two decades of experience housing brown bears and its partnership with Alaska wildlife authorities. The arrival mirrors a 2008 rescue effort when the zoo brought in its first trio of orphaned Alaskan bears to open the Russia’s Grizzly Coast exhibit.
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