Hiding in the wreckage of an abandoned zoo in the Donetsk region of Ukraine, the eastern front line that has been fiercely contested by Russian and Ukrainian forces, was an unlikely survivor. Shells battered his home and his caretakers were long gone. Around 200 of his companions had perished. But somehow, a lone Asian black bear was clinging to life in a cell when Ukrainian soldiers discovered him last fall. Named Yampil, after the village where he was found, he was taken to a Polish zoo and later a wildlife rehabilitation center in Belgium. The happy news is that Yampil is recovering from his injuries and malnutrition and will be adopted by Five Sisters Zoo in Scotland. The zoo is constructing a new enclosure for the bear. If all goes well, he could live around another 20 years in Scotland.
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