Meet Lincoln Park Zoo’s newest residents: Baby red pandas!
Chicago has some incredible cute new residents! The Lincoln Park Zoo posted a video on YouTube to introduce the zoo’s first ever baby red panda cubs to the world and their cuteness factor is at 11. These natural climbers are up and down all over their new habitat, moving like they own the joint.
The two cubs, a male named Clark and his gal pal Addison, just went on exhibit after spending some time “growing in size and strength.” They’ve been hanging out outside of the view of the public with their mother Leafa since their birth. Red pandas, if you’ve never seen them, are racoon-like in appearance (rather than panda-esque), but they’re not related to pandas or raccoons! They’re their own unique, adorable, squishable animal.
They’re also a vulnerable species. Their natural habitat is in the Himalayan mountain ranges in China, Nepal, India, Burma and Bhutan, but there they face habitat loss and poaching.
“We’re excited to see the cubs explore their outdoor exhibit space and to be able to share their playful nature with our guests,” said Curator of Mammals Mark Kamhout in a press release. “The red panda cubs continue to grow in size but also in how vocal they are, their activity level and curiosity levels.”
We can’t get enough of watching these two kids (and their mama, Leafa) make themselves at home in their new digs!
(Image via YouTube)
