NYC's Only Polar Bear Euthanized After Illness

NEW YORK (AP) — New York City's only polar bear has been euthanized at the Bronx Zoo. Officials said the 26-year-old animal was suffering from acute kidney failure.

The Wildlife Conservation Society announced Wednesday that Tundra, 26, was put down Saturday at the zoo where he was born in 1991.

The organization said Tundra also had arthritis that worsened despite treatment. The median life expectancy for male polar bears in zoos is under 21.

Zoo director Jim Breheny said Tundra "remained extremely active and playful until just before his death." He called Tundra "an important ambassador for his species."

Tundra became the city's sole polar bear when 27-year-old Gus was euthanized at the Central Park Zoo in 2013.

The Bronx Zoo doesn't plan to acquire another polar bear.

Lead image: Tundra the polar bear at the Bronx Zoo emerges from a dip in his pool on July 20, 2005. (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)