PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium is welcoming a new member to its family in hopes of making a polar bear love connection.

Officials at the zoo say 11-year-old Kobe, a 700-pound female polar bear, is making her debut to the public today at the Water’s Edge exhibit.

Zoo officials say Kobe arrived in Pittsburgh a few weeks ago from the Reid Park Zoo in Tuscon, Ariz.

The zoo says they are hoping that Kobe makes a love connection with their 7-year-old male polar bear, Koda, who has just reached his prime.

So far, zoo officials say Kobe and Koda are being kept in side-by-side rooms. They are also alternating time on the outside polar bear tundra.

Officials say their keepers will eventually move them into the same space and “hope that love grows.”

Zoo officials say polar bear breeding usually occurs from March to June.

According to the zoo, the Kobe and Koda match is the result of a recommendation from the Association of Zoos and Aquarium’s Species Survival Plan.

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