No Tourists in the Zoo: The Parrots' Eyes Have Meaning, the Peacock's Unprecedented Arrogance, and the Pandas Are More Relaxed
Huang Xiao, 90s, Shanghai Zoo staff, she is not a zookeeper. With a master's degree in journalism, she previously interned at media outlets. She chose this 'quiet' job after graduation, and she spends her days seeing more animals than people.
Today, she told the reporter about her amazing experience: Walking through the animal park without tourists, the animals that were previously surrounded by onlookers now seem to look at her. They made various interesting movements—
The beautiful flamingos, originally peaceful and quiet, became noisy because of my arrival at the exhibit.Compared to the usual 'head buried in its back', shy state with visitors, I prefer their current appearance—they straighten their long necks and flap their wings to come towards me, 'Gaga Gaga' calling.It's like they're discussing me with their companions: 'Look, this is the two-legged animal we're familiar with, why have we only seen it for so long?' This welcoming and charming way of receiving guests really surprised me.
The quiet peacock was a group of blue and white elves.They were born arrogant, and they wouldn't greet people warmly, but instead, they casually perched on the tree branches or leisurely strolled in their territory.After a while, several brave ones dragged their gorgeous tails and walked step by step, which was even more imposing. Could it be because I was alone and wanted to 'take advantage'? It's said that peacocks are fierce and will peck people, but I still like their unprecedented beauty and confidence.
I quickly hurried away, and I wanted to see other changes.
'Hello, hello,' this scarlet macaw seemed to be greeting me. He was taken in, probably learning the 'tongue' from his previous owner; the zookeepers didn't teach him anything else.He always enjoys showing off his talents in front of people, so he gradually became a 'little internet celebrity', and many tourists take pictures and videos of him.
I imitated his tone again and again: 'Hello, hello!' This time it didn't respond to me. I sighed and walked away, thinking: It has been so long since it encountered someone to chat with, and it seems to have missed it. But when I turned around, it said 'hello, hello' again, and I happily responded to it. It didn't respond to me again, and I was about to walk away when it started 'hello, hello' again—I had a feeling that this parrot 'tricked' me. And its eyes were full of meaning. Perhaps after spending so long in the park, it had learned the trick of 'feigning ignorance', which was really ingenious.
I saw many such animals in the bird area. The parrot exhibit was still lively and noisy; the pelicans lazily preened, looking like they didn't want to be disturbed; the penguins huddled together, swimming and eating fish, and they got bored and had a fight; the red-flanked bluetail was courting; the mandarin ducks were walking together; and there was also a fluffy little swan walking on the shore to bathe in the sunshine.
As soon as I stepped onto the ring path in the primate exhibit, dense roars appeared beside my ears. It was probably the Arab baboons who saw me first and were greeting me? When I stepped onto the staircase, I found they had already sat in a row along the edge of the deep pit exhibition area. Here, there was a strict hierarchy, 'the king' naturally sat on the high spot, and 'the bronze's' kept a distance, chatting and flattering.
No matter what identity the baboon had, it faced me; one of them even stood on its head and flipped over. I realized that they were begging for food.At that moment, I felt a little sour, I didn't expect that the tourists' feeding would affect their behavior so much. It was not just the behavior, but even their bodies were damaged after each time they left without anyone to feed them. Humans' so-called 'delicious food' harmed them; when they turned away, there were unheard cries behind them.
This brown bear was like us standing in the balcony during the isolation period.Zookeeper Luo Jun said that when there were tourists, it would stand up straight and interact with people; he always went to pick up the food thrown by the tourists and imitated playing ice skating with stones, and when it was happy, it even walked like a person. Mr. Luo said that the brown bear was lonely now, but it didn't care about eating and begging for food.
I continued to walk into the park to 'meet' the giant pandas. Today, they were really having a 360-degree view without dead ends, which was the first time. I used to have to compete with tourists for the viewing angle.
They were named 'Star Light' and 'WindNo matter what the outside chaos was, they remained undisturbed by the sounds of their companions; without various feedings, they ate healthier; even the territory seemed to have become more spacious.
I couldn't help but think: For thousands of years, wild animals have always coexisted with us without being domesticated.
In the park, they are carefully raised by us, and people don't need to work hard to feed them, bringing them physical burdens.
In the wild, they are free, why do people want to eat and destroy the natural balance and beauty?
Column Editor: Zhang Yi; Text Editor: Lu Yin Zhi; Image Photography: Yang Junjie; Huang Xiao
