Knut watchers were on high alert yesterday after the Berlin Zoo's polar bear cub was targeted with an anonymous death threat, just a day after recovering from a health scare that turned out to be a toothache. The 4-month-old alarmed visitors Monday by refusing to frolic, lying on the ground with his paws over his eyes.
Treatment with antibiotics took care of the fever and swelling caused by teething, and Knut was back to enchanting fans under the watchful eyes of his 15 private body guards. Since the cub made his debut in late March, zoo attendance has roughly doubled, as has the price of shares in the zoo, which are traded on the German stock exchange. (More Knut stories.)