- Title: AUSTRALIA: TARONGA ZOO'S NEW BABY RED PANDA TWINS BORN
- Date: 3rd April 2003
- Summary: (L!1) TARONGA ZOO, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA (APRIL 3, 2003) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) ADULT RED PANDA SITTING IN TREE VARIOUS OF BABY RED PANDA TWINS BEING HANDLED BY ZOO KEEPERS BABY RED PANDA EATING FRUIT PANDA RUNNING AWAY TOWARDS BUSH ZOO KEEPER HOLDING UP TWIN PANDAS (SOUNDBITE) (English) TARONGA ZOO KEEPER, ROBERT DOCKERILL, SAYING: "Red pandas are endangered in the wild and we're part of the international breeding programme here and these are actually the 39th and 40th cubs born at Taronga so we're doing sort of a big part in keeping the pandas alive in captivity and because there has now been an initial re-introduction programme back into the wild." CLOSE UP OF RED PANDA CHEWING FOOD VARIOUS OF RED PANDA RUNNING AWAY RED PANDA RUNNING UP INTO TREE
- Embargoed: 18th April 2003 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA
- City:
- Country: Australia
- Topics: Environment,Quirky,Light / Amusing / Unusual / Quirky
- Reuters ID: LVA93MZO2NPLDIJCEO2TEVNDE4Q6
- Aspect Ratio:
- Story Text: Australia's world-famous Taronga Zoo's new baby Red Panda twins are adorable from a distance - but don't get too close.
Taronga Zoo's new star attractions have a predominantly rusty red coat, with black fur on their feet, a white striped tail and white furry ears.
Born in December last year, they are a sub-species of the Nepalese Red Panda found in south-western China.
The red panda lives in the bamboo forests of the Himalayan mountains. Its range extends through Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Burma, and Sichuan and Yunnan provinces in western China. The panda lives at elevations from 2,000 to 4,800 meters.
Zoo keeper Robert Dockerill said the twins were number 39 and 40 for Taronga Zoo, which started its breeding program in 1977.
"Red pandas are endangered in the wild and we're part of the international breeding programme here and these are actually the 39th and 40th cubs born at Taronga so we're doing sort of a big part in keeping the pandas alive in captivity and because there has now been an initial re-introduction programme back into the wild," Robert Dockerill said.
Red Pandas spend most of their time in trees and are carnivores but bamboo is their main diet.
Like the Giant Panda, they have an extra thumb to help them hold bamboo shoots. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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