The Shanghai Animal Park: where to meet the "big bearcat" who “wears” Yin and Yang
In the heart of Shanghai, the lively and many-faced Chinese metropolis, far from the chaos and bustling city, houses a magical and unspoiled place, immersed in the verdant and harmonious nature, the enchanting animal park. Located in the new area of Pudong, it’s one of the largest zoological parks in China and is the first wild zoo nationwide, covering an area of 153 hectares. In full respect and protection of living conditions, animals, wild and otherwise, live in freedom and immersed in their natural habitat. The Shanghai park houses over 10,000 animals from all over the world and more than 200 rare and protected species that live in separate areas. In fact, the zoo is divided into two large areas, a pedestrian one, where visitors can interact with animals in close contact, can caress them and give them food, and an area dedicated to wild animals, which can be traveled aboard a bus from which you can safely admire Asian tigers, white rhinos, elephants, giraffes, zebras and golden monkeys. But the main attraction of this park is undoubtedly the animal symbol of China, the giant panda.
This tender little bear with thick white and black fur is a mammal of the family Usiridae, originating in central China and the mountainous regions of Sichuan. Its Chinese name is "big bearcat" due to its resemblance to bears in appearance and felines for their paws with pads and pupils, so they have an excellent view, especially at night. Unlike bears, pandas never go into hibernation – maybe it’s because they spend half of their days sleeping - they are excellent swimmers and climbers, but above all they are not ferocious predators, but harmless herbivores. Bamboo devourers, pandas spend about 14 hours a day chewing buds, leaves and stems, for a total of 12 to 38 kg per day, the nourishment necessary for a weight of up to 150 kg. And when it is said that nature provides for everything, a sort of sixth finger in the shape of an thumb seems to be made to grab the precious bamboo canes, lifeblood for pandas.
In fact, it was precisely the knocking down of the forests that strongly determined the risk of extinction of this unique specimen. The panda is in fact among the protected species, so much so that the Zoological Society of London, on the basis of criteria of evolutionary uniqueness and low population, considered the giant panda until a few years ago one of the 100 species of mammals at greatest risk of extinction. It is no coincidence that in 1961 the animal symbol of the WWF became an emblem of the active conservation of nature. Today, fortunately, following adequate sustainable measures and environmental policies, this risk has been averted, so that from endangered species it is now considered "vulnerable". But, as we mentioned earlier, the panda is not only the symbol of the largest environmental association in the world, it is also one of China's national emblems, so much so that in 1982 our tender friend was depicted on Chinese gold coins and boasts a series dedicated to him, the so-called "Golden Panda" series.
Absolute protagonist of Chinese popular culture, it has always been celebrated in history and ceremonies, as a symbol of strength and delicacy at the same time. But it’s the colors of his soft mantle that enclose the deepest symbolism: Yin and Yang, white and black, the balance of opposites, the foundation of Chinese philosophy. It is said that giving a pendant with the shape of a panda helps balance the life of a person and find harmony between energies. Once in the middle ground you will certainly not be able to do without visiting this beautiful specimen, an unmissable attraction like the Summer Palace or the Forbidden City, as well as being able to closely observe many other exclusive species of the Asian continent
The Shanghai animal park will therefore be a bit like leafing through "The book of the jungle", a moment of pure escape, a dip in the beauties of uncontaminated nature and its curious inhabitants, which preserve all the sweetness and simplicity of the animal kingdom.
