Overview
- Detroit received Kali from the Toledo Zoo and sent Nuka to Toledo in a coordinated swap announced Friday.
- The Polar Bear Population Alliance backed the exchange to strengthen managed care, genetics, and social dynamics across accredited zoos.
- In Toledo, Nuka will again be paired with female polar bear Crystal, according to Detroit Zoo chief life sciences officer Mike Murray.
- In Detroit, Kali will undergo phased introductions to resident females Suka, 13, and Haley, 23, initially on opposite sides of the 4-acre Arctic Ring of Life habitat.
- Kali, rescued as an orphaned cub in Point Lay, Alaska in 2013, moved to the Saint Louis Zoo in 2015 and to Toledo in 2025 before this transfer.