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Sometimes, more than an “Aha!” moment, you need an “aww” moment. Just something beyond adorable to boost your mood. This is that something.
While at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia, Nate and I found the red panda exhibit, and met one pudgy little red panda who couldn’t decide whether he was hungry or sleepy. He kept alternating between tucking in for a nap, then rubbing his paws over his face and crawling along tree limbs to gobble up a few leaves — before slinking right back to his nap area.
Just check him out:
As you can see, he looks a lot more like a cross between a bear, a raccoon and a cat than a panda. There are about 10,000 red pandas in the world, making them a vulnerable species, not an endangered one, according to the World Wildlife Fund, and about 50 percent of them live in the Eastern Himalayas. As nesting trees are torn down, the red pandas have fewer places to call home, resulting in fewer RPs overall. They’re also hunted for their pelts. Not cool.
The World Wildlife Fund has been working with community groups in Nepal and other areas to protect red pandas and their homes. It’s now a $1,000 fine and up to 10 years in jail for anyone accused of buying/selling/killing the animal, and the organization is also trying to replace hunting and deforesting with other ways to make money, like creating tourism packages and making yak dung briquettes for fuel (instead of wood, so people won’t need to chop down trees).
Okay, I know that got a little heavy at the end, but staring at Rigby (and, admittedly, desperately wanting to hug him), realized I needed to know more about the red panda, and I wanted to share that with you.
