Rebellious Andean bear sneaks out of US zoo - twice

The Andean bear, Ben, is known to be "young and adventurous" according to the zoo

New security measures added to this Andean bear's habitat by the Saint Louis Zoo were no match for his adventurous nature.

After escaping his habitat earlier this month, on 7 February, the four-year-old bear, named Ben, snuck out again on Thursday afternoon.

Andean bears are only found in South America, but are vulnerable due to habitat loss and poaching threats.

Ben is now back at the zoo after roaming free for 50 minutes.

In his earlier getaway, the zoo said he meddled with the steel mesh of his outdoor habitat, "causing a cable to give way, which then allowed him to work his way out".

In response, zoo staff "made the habitat even more secure by adding stainless steel cargo clips rated at 450 pounds tensile strength", but of course that still "wasn't enough for Ben".

The Zoo Animal Emergency Response protocol was implemented after they discovered Ben had once again escaped, and he was secured in just under an hour from "start to finish".

It was faster than last time - Ben's 7 February capture took over an hour and a half.

The zoo says they know Ben is "young and adventurous" and will continue to "investigate other alternative ways to secure the habitat", they said in a statement.