Red panda

“Haku” is the cute new arrival at Salzburg Zoo

Haku has already made his first exploratory tour(Bild: Krone KREATIV/Zoo Salzburg)

Salzburg Zoo has a new resident - and he's already making himself at home in his enclosure. The red panda "Haku" came to Hellbrunn from France.

The young red panda arrived in Salzburg at the beginning of the week. The very next afternoon, he poked his little black nose into the Salzburg air for the first time. "We stood in front of the enclosure with a few colleagues and looked spellbound at the open slider. After a few minutes, we spotted two curious eyes and then Haku poked his head outside," recalls curator Lisa Sernow. The new arrival had barely set one paw on the outdoor enclosure before he started his tour of discovery. Meticulously and with outward composure, the young male examined every inch of his new home.

Meanwhile, nine-year-old Xia, who has lived at Salzburg Zoo since April 2016, was taking her afternoon nap in a shady fork in a branch and was initially unaware of her new roommate's busy activities. "She only noticed him when Haku carefully approached her. The two red pandas then sniffed each other a little, but kept a respectful distance from each other," explains Lisa Sernow. Both then continued with their previous activities.

"We are now very happy to have a male Red Panda back in Salzburg," says Managing Director Sabine Grebner happily. And: "Due to his young age, Haku is correspondingly more active and has already caught the eye of some visitors. It probably won't be long before he becomes a real visitor favorite."