Fort Worth Zoo
Cinnamon and Raisin weren’t born Texans, but they’re settling in like they were.
The one-year-old American black bear cubs — rescued after being orphaned in Montana — are the newest residents at the Fort Worth Zoo, where they’ve quickly made themselves at home in the Texas Wild! exhibit. Introduced via an social media post, the siblings are already drawing attention for their contrasting coats and curious personalities: Cinnamon with her sunlit rust coloring and fearless energy, and Raisin with the classic black bear look and a more laid-back approach to his surroundings.
The cubs were taken in by Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks after losing their mother, according to the zoo’s Instagram. Officials there determined that, because of the cubs’ young age and growing comfort around humans, returning them to the wild wouldn’t be safe. The Fort Worth Zoo — already home to black bears since 2001 and backed by the kind of resources and staff experience that make this kind of long-term care possible — stepped in to provide a permanent home.
Fort Worth Zoo
Cinnamon
Their new territory is the Pineywoods & Swamps habitat, part of the Zoo’s sprawling Texas Wild! exhibit, which walks visitors through a series of Lone Star landscapes — from desert to forest and everything in between. According to the Zoo’s Instagram caption, Cinnamon and Raisin wasted no time testing out their new surroundings: climbing logs, pawing through brush, swimming, and generally behaving like two toddlers on a sugar high.
Fort Worth Zoo
Raisin
Despite their name, American black bears (Ursus americanus) don’t always come in black. Their coats can range from blond to silver, cinnamon to slate blue. In fact, the Fort Worth Zoo points out that even cubs in the same litter can be different colors — a detail on full display with this sibling duo. What they do tend to have in common is a brown muzzle and an uncanny ability to adapt.
Historically meat-eaters, today’s black bears are omnivores who’ll eat just about anything: berries, frogs, fish, honey, eggs, and occasionally the leftovers from a poorly secured picnic cooler. They’re agile swimmers and fast runners, capable of hitting 30 miles per hour and scaling trees like it’s nothing. In the wild, they’re mostly crepuscular — active at dawn and dusk — but bears living closer to people sometimes flip their schedules in search of easier meals.
Though Cinnamon and Raisin won’t be returning to the forests of Montana, they’ve found a version of wild that works. Surrounded by the careful balance of conservation and care, they’re getting the second chance most orphaned cubs never do.
And judging by the videos on the Fort Worth Zoo’s Instagram feed — where the pair can be seen wrestling in water and inspecting every inch of their new home — they’re making the most of it.
“Providing a home for animals that are no longer able to live in their natural habitat is another way the Zoo remains committed to the care and conservation of all species,” the Zoo posted.
