A 5-year-old female polar bear named Laerke is set to arrive at the Saint Louis Zoo this fall, joining the facility's male, Kallu, in a pairing that conservationists hope will eventually produce the next generation of a species running out of time. Zoo officials announced the move as part of a coordinated national breeding effort, with hopes that the two bears will someday have cubs together.
Laerke will be paired with Kallu under a formal breeding recommendation, according to KSDK, which reported her upcoming arrival. Kallu, who is nearly 4 years old, was born on Nov. 11, 2022, at the Toledo Zoo & Aquarium alongside his twin brother Kallik and moved to the Saint Louis Zoo in March 2025 in an exchange for long-time resident polar bear Kali, according to the Saint Louis Zoo. Kali had lived at the zoo for nearly ten years after being rescued as an orphaned cub near Point Lay, Alaska, before relocating to Toledo in March 2025 for his first breeding opportunity.
Kallik's Move to Oregon
The zoo relocated Kallik to the Oregon Zoo in January 2026, saying that separating the brothers would help them prepare for their next phase of life. Male polar bears naturally become solitary as they reach subadulthood between 2.5 and 5 years old, per the zoo's account of the move.
Laerke's path to St. Louis has not been simple. She was born at the Detroit Zoo in 2020 and experienced a medical emergency shortly after birth, leaving her with ongoing health issues that have required intensive hands-on care, per KSDK's reporting. At 9 months old, she was paired with an orphaned grizzly bear cub to help her develop social skills.
Point Defiance Zoo veterinarians have monitored Laerke's hormone levels for the past year, and those levels indicate she has started estrus cycling, KSDK reports. Her care team hopes her journey to motherhood will ultimately be instinctual. Female polar bears typically become reproductively mature between 4 and 6 years old.
Coordinated Breeding Efforts
Laerke's transfer is part of a broader breeding effort focused on genetic diversity among polar bears in human care.
Laerke and Kallu actually share the same father, Nuka, who sired Laerke with female Suka at the Detroit Zoo in November 2020 and Kallu with female Crystal at the Toledo Zoo in November 2022, according to Bear Conservation. The Polar Bear Population Alliance's breeding recommendations support its goal of genetic diversity. Matt Thompson, who represents the Polar Bear Population Alliance, said Laerke's move and the opportunity to pair her with Kallu represent strategic, coordinated action essential to polar bear recovery, per KSDK.
Polar bears are classified as threatened under the U.S. Endangered Species Act and face a high risk of global extinction due to the effects of climate change on their Arctic habitat, according to KSDK's reporting. That backdrop has pushed the alliance to move bears across the country in pursuit of viable pairs — Laerke's twin sister Astra, for instance, moved from Point Defiance Zoo to Como Zoo in St. Paul, Minnesota, in 2025 to pair with male bear Kulu under the same conservation plan, according to Como Zoo Conservatory. Astra and Laerke had been reunited at age 2 before the pair moved together to Tacoma in 2023.
What Happens To Laerke's Old Home
Laerke's departure leaves a gap back in Washington state. Following her exit in fall 2026, Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium in Tacoma will be without a polar bear entirely and plans to temporarily house its penguins in the vacant bear habitat in early 2027 during construction on a new penguin exhibit, according to the zoo's own announcement.
In St. Louis, Laerke will have a specialized home waiting for her. McDonnell Polar Bear Point opened in June 2015 and includes a private Care Center with bedroom spaces, a denning area and an outdoor habitat.
Saint Louis Zoo officials expect Laerke to make her public debut in late 2026 after she completes quarantine, but visitors may not see Laerke and Kallu together in the habitat until early 2027 as introductions take time, the zoo says. The pairing — and any future cubs — will unfold over time. Hoodline previously covered the twins' arrival in March 2025, when Kallu and Kallik first settled into the exhibit alongside Kali's departure.
