Thoughtless zoo visitors put animals in danger
By Lu Feiran |
July 22, 2010, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
VISITORS to the Shanghai Zoo are putting animals' lives at risk with their carelessly discarded rubbish.
Chinese alligators at the zoo look like they're living on a trash dump with empty water bottles and soft drink cans littering their pool.
Chinese alligators are first class national protected reptile.
Concerned visitors put pictures online showing two alligators creeping among discarded water bottles.
One even had a discarded napkin on its head, thrown down by a passer-by.
Visitors also said they witnessed two pelicans fighting over a plastic fork someone had thrown away.
Zoo officials said yesterday that they would be sending in more workers and increasing the number of shifts in a bid to keep the enclosures free from trash.
"Usually each keeper has to be in charge of several cages. They feed the animals, clean the cages several times a day and keep an eye on visitors, preventing them from feeding animals," said zoo official Pan Xiuwen. "In fact, keepers' speed of cleaning cannot catch up with that of people throwing trash."
Pan said visitor volume had soared recently, and so had the amount of trash.
"We expect visitors to behave themselves," said Pan.
"But we know that it could be a long time before attitudes change."
In July 1993, a female giraffe, Hai Bin, was found dead in her enclosure in the zoo. Keepers found in her stomach plastic bags, which were thrown into her cage by visitors.
Now stuffed and on display at the zoo, Hai Bin is a constant reminder to people visiting the attraction not to throw trash or feed the animals.
Chinese alligators at the zoo look like they're living on a trash dump with empty water bottles and soft drink cans littering their pool.
Chinese alligators are first class national protected reptile.
Concerned visitors put pictures online showing two alligators creeping among discarded water bottles.
One even had a discarded napkin on its head, thrown down by a passer-by.
Visitors also said they witnessed two pelicans fighting over a plastic fork someone had thrown away.
Zoo officials said yesterday that they would be sending in more workers and increasing the number of shifts in a bid to keep the enclosures free from trash.
"Usually each keeper has to be in charge of several cages. They feed the animals, clean the cages several times a day and keep an eye on visitors, preventing them from feeding animals," said zoo official Pan Xiuwen. "In fact, keepers' speed of cleaning cannot catch up with that of people throwing trash."
Pan said visitor volume had soared recently, and so had the amount of trash.
"We expect visitors to behave themselves," said Pan.
"But we know that it could be a long time before attitudes change."
In July 1993, a female giraffe, Hai Bin, was found dead in her enclosure in the zoo. Keepers found in her stomach plastic bags, which were thrown into her cage by visitors.
Now stuffed and on display at the zoo, Hai Bin is a constant reminder to people visiting the attraction not to throw trash or feed the animals.
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