US has been spending the first days of 2014 in the grip of record-breaking cold and snow as a 'polar vortex' sent the temperatures plunging to their coldest level in nearly 20 years. After days of an arctic chill so cold that a Chicago zoo brought their polar bear inside, the United States woke up to a break in the weather Wednesday.
The National Weather Service said "a much anticipated warm up" was expected over the eastern two-thirds of the United States which had shivered through a week of record-breaking cold and two massive snowstorms.
Anana, the lone polar bear at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, has never grown the thick layer of fat that bears in their native Arctic develop to insulate themselves against winter temperatures that can range as low as -50 degrees F, zoo spokeswoman Sharon Dewar said. So when temperatures plunged well into the negative range in Chicago, Anana stayed in a 40ish-degree habitat, Dewar said.
"In the wild, they would seasonally eat seals and fatten themselves up with that blubber," Dewar said. But zookeepers "don't feed them seals or fatten them up," she said.
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And at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh, both bald eagles and African penguins "who are used to temperate climates" were taken off exhibit until the weather warms up, the facility reported.
The National Weather Service said "a much anticipated warm up" was expected over the eastern two-thirds of the United States which had shivered through a week of record-breaking cold and two massive snowstorms.
Anana, the lone polar bear at the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, has never grown the thick layer of fat that bears in their native Arctic develop to insulate themselves against winter temperatures that can range as low as -50 degrees F, zoo spokeswoman Sharon Dewar said. So when temperatures plunged well into the negative range in Chicago, Anana stayed in a 40ish-degree habitat, Dewar said.
"In the wild, they would seasonally eat seals and fatten themselves up with that blubber," Dewar said. But zookeepers "don't feed them seals or fatten them up," she said.
Your winter weather photos Your winter weather photos
Reporter: Polar vortex a 'cursed phrase' Bone-chilling cold to grip much of U.S. Temperatures plunge in Chicago Power failures leave Canadians in the dark
And at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh, both bald eagles and African penguins "who are used to temperate climates" were taken off exhibit until the weather warms up, the facility reported.