Following KivĆŗ's death, many people turned to FUNDAZOOās facebook profile blaming the organization for keeping the lion in his metal cage during most of his life.
A report from a recent inspection ordered the lion to be moved to a new, bigger space that should resemble an African Savannah with trees, plants, a pond and trails.
In the spirit of setting the record straight, we at The Tico Times are starting a new occasional column called āFor the record.ā In this first column, we take apart the false news recently reported in online and international media that Costa Rica is closing its zoos.
A first tiny cub - pink, hairless and only about the size of an adult mouse - was born at 5:35 pm (2135 GMT) Saturday and Mei Xiang reacted by tenderly picking up it up. Just when conservationists thought they had heard all the good news, the zoo tweeted: "We can confirm a second cub was born at 10:07. It appears healthy. #PandaStory."
Two weeks ago, before leaving on a trip to the country's distant Isla del Coco, Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla stood before the press at the Caldera Coast Guard base in the country's central Pacific and discussed her legacy in marine conservation.