A bear pit was historically used to display bears, typically for entertainment and especially bear-baiting. The pit area was normally surrounded by a high fence, above which the spectators would look down on the bears.

The most traditional form of maintaining bears in captivity is keeping them in pits, although many zoos replaced these by more elaborate and spacious enclosures that attempt to replicate their natural habitats, for the benefit of the animals and the visitors.

Berlin has a bear pit, known as the Bärenzwinger, which was established in 1939 in Köllnischer Park behind the Märkisches Museum.

Another bear pit in Berne, Switzerland, known as the Bärengraben, was built in 1857 but the bears have been moved in a nearby open park next to the Aare river called the BärenPark (bear park) since october 2009.

Contents 1 Other meanings 2 See also 3 References 4 External links

[edit] Other meanings

An other meaning is for an unusually aggressive political arena, in which direct, heated attacks are common.^[1]

[edit] See also

• Bear
• Menagerie
• Zoo

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Sheffield Botanical Gardens Bear Pit
• Bear parc in Bern

v • d • e Zoos, aquaria, and aviaries Types of zoos Aquarium · Aviary · Bear pit · Butterfly zoo · Dolphinarium · Herpetarium · Insectarium · Marine mammal park · Menagerie · Safari park · Oceanarium · Petting zoo · Reptile centre · Serpentarium · Vivarium · Zoo Conservation Biodiversity · Endangered species · Extinction · Ex-situ conservation · In-situ conservation Lists Aquaria · Dolphinariums · Zoos · Zoo associations Animals Amphibian · Bird · Fish · Invertebrate · Mammal · Reptile Other topics Animals in captivity · Animal training · Behavioral enrichment · Captive breeding · Frozen zoo · Immersion exhibit · Nocturnal house · Zookeeper · Zoology

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