Zoo pulls out all the stops as €9.5m polar bear Knut turns one

CELEBRITY polar bear Knut — who won the hearts of millions around the globe as a roly-poly orphan cub — celebrated his first birthday yesterday with a cake made from 300 eggs and 10kg of marzipan.

The Berlin Zoo pulled out all the stops to fete its star attraction, who has gone from a fluffy white powderpuff of a cub to a full-grown polar bear with a cheeky curiosity and a penchant for muddying his coat by rolling in the dirt.

His giant birthday cake was made from 300 eggs, about 14kg each of flour and sugar, and 10kg of marzipan. Children were given free entry to the zoo to help celebrate Knut’s birthday, and proceeds from sales of slices of the cake will go toward the zoo’s foundation.

He may have weighed less than 1kg at birth, but now tips the scale at more than 108kg and has been on a diet since July.

Abandoned at birth, along with a twin brother who only survived a couple of days, Knut attracted attention when Berlin’s media picked up the story of his main caregiver camping out at the zoo to give the cub his bottle every two hours.

Animal rights activists tried to sue the zoo for cruelty to animals by preventing nature taking its course when the cub was rejected.

Knut has generated more than €9.5 million for the zoo over the past year with Knut toys, books and other trinkets.