A giant panda was spotted clutching its head in pain after a tourist threw a full bottle of coke at it while visiting a zoo in China.
Video footage shows the panda, ‘Lan Xiang,’ reclining against a rock wall and chewing bamboo at Chongqing Zoo when a middle-aged man suddenly hurled the bottle at her from outside the enclosure.
The bottle grazed Lan Xiang’s head before hitting the ground with a loud bang. The sudden noise startled the panda, causing it to drop the bamboo it was holding, sit upright in shock, and rub its head with its paws, appearing visibly distressed.
Zookeepers arrived shortly afterwards to remove the bottle from the enclosure and tend to Lan Xiang’s needs, who was fine after being calmed down.
The tourist, named locally as Cao, was then escorted from the zoo by security personnel, and has since been charged with public disturbance by local authorities.
When asked what prompted him to throw the bottle at Lan Xiang, Cao claimed he was trying to ‘share’ his drink with the panda, and arrogantly told security, ‘is it wrong for me to invite the giant pandas to drink Coke?’
The zoo also said they will further strengthen security following the incident, set up a platform to expose uncivilized behavior, and establish a ‘blacklist’ system to prevent bad actors harming or distressing the animals.
Lan Xiang is a female giant panda born on July 12, 2002, in Wolong Hetaoping, and the younger sister of another panda named Liang Liang.
As a prominent figure at Chongqing Zoo, Lan Xiang enjoys considerable fame and is affectionately nicknamed Lan Guifei (Noble Consort Lan). Due to her lack of enthusiasm for physical activity, she is also jokingly referred to as ‘Lazy Guifei.’
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