On Thursday 9 May, Sea World was delighted to welcome a baby Polar Bear into its family. The cub, which weighed only 600 grams at birth, is doing well and is growing fast, now weighing in at approximately 1.5kg.

Over the past few weeks Sea World’s Polar Bear Keepers have been hearing strange noises coming from the Polar Bear Shores maternity den as the park’s newest arrival finds its voice.

Just one month on and the little cub has already reached a number of significant milestones including vocalisations, opening its eyes and trying out its wobbly legs. The Keepers and Sea World guests are also seeing the face of the cub change with the ears now protruding and the nose turning from pink to black.

Each day the cub is becoming stronger and more mobile, starting to push itself up into a sitting position.

At this early stage of its life, the cub is in the specially designed maternity den at Polar Bear Shores. This den is pitch black and features special cameras which allow Sea World’s highly qualified Polar Bear and veterinary team to watch over Mum Liya and the cub.

Zookeepers won't know the sex of the baby until it emerges from the den later this month, the Australian Associated Press reports.

Polar bears have long been a symbol of the climate change fight, and face shrinking habitats, food scarcity and the threat of turning brown as temperatures rise. (Source)