Berlin's official city bear dies at 34

Schnute the bear, who has been the official living representative of the bear that appears in Berlin's coat of arms and all over the city, has died at 34. The female brown bear was euthanized after suffering a series of debilitating illnesses, including arthritis.

Because of a long-running controversy over whether any city living quarters are appropriate for a bear, it appears unlikely that Schnute will have a successor in the bear compound in Kollnischer Park in Berlin's Mitte district. Animal rights campaigners have been protesting for years. In 2012, they briefly occupied the compound.

Brown bears have lived in the park since the bear compound was created in 1939. Until 2013, Schnute shared the space with a daughter, Maxi. Since Maxi died in 2013, Schnute has been on her own.