Wellington, New Zealand — A purple panda that spent two days on the lam after escaping from an Australian zoo was recaptured Sunday after he was noticed hanging out in a fig tree in a close-by park.
Named Ravi, the 7-year-old panda had arrived at Adelaide Zoo final week after he was introduced in from one other zoo with hopes that he would pair up with a feminine purple panda named Mishry. However by Friday, Ravi was gone.
Adelaide Zoo Director Phil Ainsley advised the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that zookeepers spent Sunday attempting to entice Ravi down from the fig tree with a few of his favourite meals, together with bamboo and candy corn, to no avail.
In the long run they fired a tranquilizer dart.
"We used a few completely different dart gadgets, lastly bought a dart into him after which simply needed to wait about quarter-hour only for the drug to take some impact," Ainsley stated.
Ravi then fell into the blankets of zookeepers who have been ready beneath the tree.
"Ravi's doing very well," Ainsley advised the broadcaster. "Settling down into animal well being hospital, the place he is simply going to spend the subsequent two or three days after being on the run. Simply need to be certain he is all wholesome and recovered from his journey."
Ainsley stated they found Ravi had escaped his enclosure Friday morning and initially centered their consideration throughout the zoo, figuring he'd be up one of many giant timber there. It wasn't till Sunday morning that a zookeeper noticed him within the fig tree within the close by botanic park.
Ainsley advised the broadcaster they'd be reviewing the zoo's CCTV footage to determine how Ravi escaped.
"Clearly, he'd simply arrived and was testing his enclosure," Ainsley stated. "We all know that purple pandas are extremely agile, and famend for being escapologists."