Arataki, a Malayan sun bear at the zoo, is celebrating its 25th birthday, which Gemma Walsh says is a remarkable milestone. 

“He’s got a four tier birthday cake made of all his favourite things, he’s got pumpkin and grapes and avocado, he had some nuts and some Weet-Bix,” says the National Zoo and Aquarium zookeeper. 

Gemma says Malayan sun bears are a relatively low-discovered species, so not much is known about them.

It is not known for certain their life expectancy in the wild, but in captivity, 25 is considered old.

“He’s had a really good innings here at the zoo, and hopefully many more years to come,” she says.

Arataki, named after Arataki honey, was born in NZ’s Wellington Zoo and brought to Canberra when it was quite young, to be a companion for Otay, the other Malayan sun bear. 

Gemma says Malayan sun bears are considered a vulnerable species, suffering from poaching, deforestation and blackmarket bile trade along with the pet and restaurant trade.

They are the smallest type of bear and are primarily found in the tropical rainforests of southeast Asia. 

Gemma says there’s more about helping Malayan sun bears at freethebears.org, an Australian-based organisation that has rescued more than 650 bears. 

“Arataki and Otay are a power team,” says Gemma. “They’ve raised a lot of money and taught a lot of people about sun bears over the years.”