Visitors to Franklin Park Zoo are invited to celebrate International Red Panda Day on September 15! Guests to the Zoo can learn more about red pandas when they stop by an education station or partake in zookeeper encounters at 11:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. at the red panda exhibit within the Children’s Zoo. This is the perfect opportunity to ask questions and find out what you can do to help their wild population, which face threats including illegal hunting and habitat destruction due to increased logging and farming.

This small mammal is known for its soft, dense red fur that covers even the soles of its feet and keeps it warm in the forests of its Himalayan habitat, as well as its ring-tail and mask-like face. Zoo New England is committed to the conservation of these animals and is an active participant in the Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP) – a cooperative, inter-zoo program coordinated nationally through the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. SSPs are designed to maintain genetically diverse and demographically stable captive populations of species. Zoo New England has also supported the Red Panda Network through its Quarters for Conservation program.