SEOUL, May 20 (Korea Bizwire) — Three Asiatic black bears, an endangered species, were born via artificial insemination.
The Korea National Park Service (KNPS), which operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Environment, announced on Sunday that out of five female bears, two had given birth to a total of three cubs.
These bears gave birth to one male cub and two female cubs after artificial insemination at the Species Restoration Technology Institute’s breeding ground in Gurye County, South Jeolla Province, in June and July of last year.
The births via artificial insemination are significant in terms of the genetic diversity of the Asiatic black bear.
According to an official at the KNPS, although the number of Asiatic black bears has been increasing due to natural breeding, there has been a problem with the actual births.
This is because only a small number of Asiatic black bears that are powerful enough to breed participate in natural breeding.
The official added that selective artificial insemination has allowed the offspring of several healthy bears to form a genetically diverse population with an increase in the number of Asiatic black bears that can participate in breeding.
The three bear cubs born via artificial insemination will undergo wild adaptation training before being released to the wild this fall.
Image Credit: Korea National Park Service / photonews@koreabizwire.com
