Camperdown Wildlife Centre has welcomed new bears to the zoo.
The three new arrivals are the first European Brown Bears, all aged 22 months, are the first of which to arrive in thirty years.
The furry babies arrived from Kolmarden Zoo in Sweden overnight and have now been released into the bear enclosure.
One male and two females will join, Star, the much-loved older female bear at the zoo. Earlier this year tragedy struck the zoo when Comet died suddenly following a short illness.
Phil McCarlie-Davis, keeper at the Wildlife Centre, said the bears will be allowed settle in ‘comfortably’ to their new home before being shown to the public.
He said: “It is very early but everything during their move to us has gone to plan and it already looks as though the young bears will settle in comfortably to their new surroundings.
“We have adapted the bear enclosure to make it more flexible and allow our existing female bear, Star, time to get used to her new companions. We can’t wait to introduce them to visitors although we need to give them time to adjust to their new surroundings first.
“We are hoping to introduce them to the public just after Christmas.”
Bob Duncan, Lord Provost and Chairman of Leisure and Culture Dundee welcomed the new additions.
He said: “You can imagine just how excited we are to announce the arrival of these three bears.
“The Wildlife Centre has a long association with European Brown Bears and has been a pioneer in bear welfare over the years. It is great news that we will now have three more bears to serve as ambassadors for the species.”
The three new bears are siblings and their mother was raised in captivity and father introduced to the Swedish zoo from the wild.
Camperdown Wildlife Centre has a long relationship with the iconic animals and there have been a number of hugely popular bears at the centre over the years. Jeremy, the original Sugar Puffs bear, arrived in 1970. Comet was welcomed in 1986, closely followed by Star soon afterwards.