Red Panda Exhibit!
The two stood in front of the glass curtain wall, eagerly scanning through the dense leaves, scattered perches, grey rocks, and low shrubs for traces of the red pandas.
Yuan Yu's gaze was sharp, and he quickly spotted one, hidden in the dense leaves at the edge of a camphor tree branch, a dark shadow moving about. He gently nudged Wang Jinxuan at his side with his elbow and pointed out, "Look at that shade!"
Wang Jinxuan shielded her eyes from the bright sunshine and looked carefully, exclaiming in surprise, "You even found that!"
It wasn't long before a plump, reddish-brown figure came down from the tree. It descended on the side that faced the visitors, its deep black belly and limbs, and the white circle around its cute cheeks made it look somewhat cautious as it glanced left and right.
Then, with both hind legs tightly wrapped around the trunk, alternating downward, the front paws touched a slanted reddish-brown perch, and the hind legs moved together downward. It still looked cautious, always glancing towards the visitors, its mouth slightly ajar as if afraid someone would carry it away.
Wang Jinxuan had seen red pandas on the internet a few times before, but this was her first time seeing one in person at the zoo. She instantly fell in love with its cute and adorable appearance, her heart fluttering, "Wow, the red panda is so cute!"
Yuan Yu chuckled, "Right? This red panda's name is Red Bean! Its nature is more cautious and timid, so it's always extra careful when coming down from the tree and often hides where people can't see it."
He had spent the longest time watching the red pandas during his last visit and had listened to the animal keeper Miss Guan Shan introducing the differences between the two red pandas, so he could already tell them apart.
As they spoke, Red Bean, seeing the ground was now closer, quickly scrambled down from the perch and sprinted a few steps. Its fur on the back and belly swaying slightly, it reached a rock.
Usually, at this point, Red Bean would relax! As it had already carefully surveyed the surroundings from the tree and confirmed that there was no danger.
But this time was a bit different, it was still acting cautious and sneaky.
After glancing back for a few seconds, it lowered its head and turned it left and right to observe and sniff the grass, then slowly took a few steps forward.
The visitors murmured among themselves, quite curious, "What is it doing?"
"Looking for food? Last time I saw the animal keeper bury food in the grass!"
But they were wrong!
Red Bean found a good spot, raised its forelimbs, slightly squatted on its hind legs, and its back formed a slight arch.
However, as it excitedly climbed onto the narrow perch, an uninvited guest arrived.
A bird with pure black feathers tinged with dark blue, a shiny black beak, and a long wedge-shaped tail landed on the upper part of the perch, its eyes shifty as it looked between Chestnut and the apples.
The exhibit was not enclosed, and there were trees around, so naturally, birds would land there.
As the zoo's environment improved, both the variety and number of birds gradually increased.
"Ah!" Wang Jinxuan became anxious, "Is that crow planning to steal the red panda's apples?"
"It looks like it!"
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Wang Jinxuan was puzzled, "But aren't crows black? Why does this one look a bit blue, and it's so big?"
This crow was about fifty to sixty centimeters long, its body a bit smaller compared to the red panda.
Yuan Yu initially thought there was no problem with the bird being a crow, but he became confused after being asked and couldn't immediately answer.
The various common urban birds that he saw every day without giving much attention. Moreover, crows were rarely seen inside Linhai City, only occasionally flying in from the suburbs.
Just then, Guan Shan returned to the exhibit, and he hurriedly asked her, "Excuse me, is that bird a crow?"
Guan Shan looked towards the exhibit and replied with a smile, "Yes, that is a crow!"
Although the crow looked ready to steal the red panda's apples, Fang Ye had said that as long as birds flying in didn't pose a danger to the animals, there was no need to deliberately chase them away. It is the presence of a variety of wildlife that makes nature enchanting.
Because of the crow's arrival, the exhibit's calm and comfortable atmosphere was disrupted, indeed becoming more lively and attractive!
One could tell just by looking at the visitors' expressions; they all widened their eyes and watched intently, focusing on the red panda and the crow, afraid of missing any drama.
The crow, entirely black with a hoarse call, was seen as unlucky, while the Oriental magpie, belonging to the same family as the crow and having a similarly raspy call, was considered a symbol of good fortune due to its attractive appearance. It just goes to show that looks are indeed very important.