First snow fell in Ranua!

15.10.2024 – Source & Photos: Ranua Wildlife Park

On the 10th of October the first snow fell in Ranua! Most of the animals in the Wildlife Park welcomed the snow with calm familiarity.

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Waiting for a call from Santa Claus? 🙂

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The Ural owl and the musk ox, however, looked like they had wandered under a shower.

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Meanwhile, the snowy owl kept a close eye on the snow falling from the trees …..

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….. and the wolverine cubs made it their mission to explore every single inch of the fresh snow cover. 😄

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Winter comes slowly, and the snow will probably melt many times before it sticks through the season, but as always, the first snow of winter is a fun and exciting time for both animals and humans.

The arctic fox is already wearing the Winter outfit.

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The swans are still swimming in the cold water but they have a warm place where they can retire if and when the weather gets too cold.

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Venus was so far away in its enclosure during the photo session that I couldn’t get a decent shot of her this time, but she’s doing fine.

This photo of Venus was taken before the snow fell.

venus before the snow fell

We are currently undergoing a renovation of our polar bear enclosures, where the old fence elements are being torn down, the ground is being improved, some ‘grottos’ are being made and the visitor experience is also being rethought.

Due to the works Venus has been in the adjacent brown bear enclosure since early summer, where she bravely moved herself via the tunnel connecting the new fences. Construction work will stop for the winter, when Venus will apparently be able to return to her old enclosure (one of the two) until next summer, when the work will continue.

A bit of jumping back and forth, but these reforms will improve the welfare of polar bears, provide new opportunities for their keeping and training, and improve the customer experience, too.

The following photos were taken last Winter.

Don’t you worry, Venus. There will be permanent snow in due course so you can feel the white stuff under your paws again …

Venus

… and have a refreshing bath in the pool. Brrrrrr!!!!

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When the night comes it’s possible to see the northern lights!

Welcome to visit the Ranua Wildlife Park

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7 Comments

  1. Dear Mervi,

    The first snow is always a special event and is greeted with joy by people and animals alike, but perhaps not by car drivers…

    We associate all the animals shown here with snow anyway: starting with the snowy owl, the reindeer, artic wolves, wolferines and, of course, the polar bears.

    So Venus gets a new enclosure and can now think about where she wants to spend the winter.

    Many thanks for the lovely update from Ranua and best wishes!
    Britta-Gudrun

  2. Während es hier noch recht warm ist,dürfen die Tiere im Zoo von Ranua schon den ersten Schnee genießen, wie schön …👍❄❄❄😊
    Das Foto von Venus ist toll! Sie scheint sich in ihrem “Übergangsrevier” wohl zu fühlen…🐻‍❄️👌😊

  3. Dear Mervi!
    These are really beautiful winter pictures and the animals seem to be very happy with its early start. Only the lynx seems to be looking a bit annoyed from his den.
    Apart from the soaked owl and the somewhat sad-looking musk oxen, they all look great and seem to be in good spirits. The wolverines are even playing happily and showing their delight at the fresh snow. This photo reminds me a little wistfully of a certain little secret agent…

    Hugs
    Anke

    • Dear Mervi
      Ranua is one of the most experienced parks and a wonderful home I am sure Venus will enjoy an interesting new enclosure.

  4. Animals in the snow are always nice to see. I like the picture with Venus behind the stone. I am curious what will happen when the old enclosure is renovated, maybe Venus will no more stay alone, let’s see. Dear Mervi, thank you for sharing these snowy photo’s

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