Beja, the Netherlands' oldest polar bear, has died

After happy baby news at the end of November with the polar bears of Eindhoven Zoo, the flag at the zoo in Brabant now hangs at half mast. Polar bear Beja, with her 29 years, 1 month and 1 day the oldest polar bear in the Netherlands, passed away last Monday.

Beja was transferred Tuesday to the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Utrecht University for further examination. This revealed that Beja had tumors in her liver and spleen. Stephan Rijnen, head of animal care at Eindhoven Zoo: "Beja had not been in good shape for some time. Old age and the associated complications - and as it turns out, tumors as well - were affecting her. Fortunately, she went to sleep peacefully on her own."

Beja had not been seen by visitors for some time. In fact, she was possibly pregnant and therefore stayed inside. However, autopsy showed that there was no pregnancy.

Eindhoven Zoo is now home to four polar bears. Mother Frimas with her two cubs born in November and their father Henk. In zoos, polar bears can live up to 30 to 35 years. In the wild, the average age is about 25 years.