Bear necessity to move Mercedes

Mercedes has lived at Edinburgh Zoo since 1984

An appeal has been launched to help a polar bear in Edinburgh move home.

The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland said it needs £50,000 to move Mercedes from Edinburgh Zoo to the Highland Wildlife park.

Original estimates put the cost of a new enclosure at £300,000 but a team of soldiers helped build the enclosure, which reduced the cost to £75,000.

The society has also raised £25,000 through donations but still needs another £50,000.

Mercedes, the only polar bear in a UK zoo, has been in Edinburgh since 1984.

Zoe Mobey, donor development manager for RZSS, said: "RZSS is a charity that receives no direct funding from the government so we rely on fundraising to help us achieve ambitious projects such as this.

"Thanks to help from the Army we only need to raise another £50,000 which we hope to achieve as soon as possible."

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