Beloved grizzly bear dies at Riverbanks Zoo

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WCBD) – A grizzly bear at the Riverbanks Zoo and Garden in Columbia died as a result of declining health on Saturday morning.

The grizzly bear, named Sundance, came to the Riverbanks Zoo with his brother Butch at nine months old.

He was known as the zoo’s ‘sunshine bear’.

“Sundance had a gentle disposition, kind eyes, and loved to interact with his keepers,” Riverbanks Zoo and Garden officials wrote in a Facebook post.

“Sundance loved to wrestle with his brother Butch and always kept an eye on his brother’s hole digging. Keepers joked that he was Butch’s foreman and oversaw all his hard work.”

The community honored Sundance by posting their best photos of him on the zoo’s Facebook page.