I have a wildlife zoo

Chapter 425 Want to Take a Sniff?

The story of passenger pigeons certainly has a lot to tell.

Originally, Native Americans hunted by using smoke, and after colonists learned this technique, they found it inefficient and upgraded it by burning sulfur directly.

Passenger pigeons liked to flock together when facing threats, and a forest might harbor tens of millions of birds. A single sulfuring could bring down hundreds of thousands.

In one of Audubon's accounts, hunters surrounded a habitat of passenger pigeons covering 300 square kilometers. The poisoned birds fell like snowflakes and even broke the wagons used to transport their carcasses.

Two farmers even drove their herds of pigs over 100 kilometers just to let them feast.

Some hunters, taking advantage of the passenger pigeons' habits, came up with a method: they sewed shut the eyes of one pigeon, tied it to a branch with a string, and set up nets around.

When the companions of the blindfolded pigeon rushed in, thinking there was food nearby, they were caught in droves in the nets. Such a decoy pigeon was called a "stool pigeon."

However, visitors might not bother to read if there's too much information on the outdoor exhibit sign.

So it just simply introduced the process of the passenger pigeon's extinction.

The story of their extinction had a huge impact, and Liu Wei had heard of it!

But he only knew the gist of it, that they were once numerous and went extinct due to human hunting.

Learning these details for the first time, he widened his eyes in shock, "Five billion? Extinct in a century and a half?"

The two illustrations on the exhibit sign—one showing the sky dark with passenger pigeons, the other showing a lone bird remaining—also struck him hard.

Five billion is a concept. Aren't there just over seven billion humans?

Thinking of it in this way, it's a bit terrifying. Living a carefree life, I've known since childhood about the ozone hole, global warming, environmental degradation. These topics often show up on reading tests and make classic essay material.

Every year it's mentioned, and every year it gets worse, yet I've never really felt it, always feeling it's something far removed from me.

If a major crisis were to happen—a deadly pandemic, nuclear wastewater, nuclear war—how long could humans survive?

Could we also disappear rapidly at some point in the future, just like the passenger pigeons?

No, no, too scary! Just the thought makes me panic somewhat.

In front of the passenger pigeon exhibit, some people stood in silence, sighing softly. Some furrowed their brows in deep thought. Others glanced and walked away, while children laughed as they touched the low-lying pigeon statues.

The class leader clapped his hands, "Let's go, let's go. Let's stop looking at pigeons and go see the giant pandas. I checked the guide earlier, and they said pandas are most active around eight or nine in the morning! If we go later, they might be resting."

"Oh!" everyone cheered in agreement.

...

Arriving at the giant panda exhibit!

When he got near the glass curtain wall, the crowd excitedly waved at Zhuangzhuang!

"Wow, the panda's coming!"

Wu Jiancong pressed his palm against the glass, "Panda, panda, give us a high five!"

Seeing a big, broad-bodied bear with black and white coloring, pushing through the underbrush and walking steadily towards them with its broad black paws had a strong visual impact!

Zhuangzhuang, in fact, didn't see them at all.

His vision was poor to begin with, and the corridor was darker than the exhibit, creating a natural barrier of light.

Unless he was one or two meters from the glass curtain wall, he couldn't see inside.

Gradually, he wandered further away, arriving in front of a tall, sturdy tree.

Finding a burlap sack, he immediately took an interest and started sniffing it with enthusiasm.

The burlap sack hung from a strong tree trunk with springs and ropes, filled with some bamboo leaves.

Zhuangzhuang got spirited!

Standing on his hind legs, he hugged the sack and bit down on it firmly.

Then, with a spin, he lay back on the grass, facing up!

Holding the sack, he rocked it from side to side.

Because the point where the sack was tied had a spring, it had good resilience!

Yanked onto the ground, the spring stretched, giving it a jumping sensation.

Zhuangzhuang clutched the sack tightly like he was wrestling with a tough opponent, practicing his boxing skills!

Hey! Hah!

Rocking back and forth, his sharp teeth tore at the sack, which soon became riddled with holes.

But Zhuangzhuang wasn't very hungry; he was playing more than anything.

After playing a bit, he found it tiring and didn't want to exert himself too much, so he let go of the sack and sashayed away again, moving at a leisurely pace.

Liu Wei saw a guide in a uniform surrounded by a crowd of tourists, apparently explaining something, so he went over to join them.

The guide, wearing a glove, held a green cylindrical object and smiled, "Who else wants to have a sniff?"

A bad feeling dawned on Liu Wei, and he raised his hand to ask, "Umm... what is that?"

The amiable guide smiled, "Fresh panda feces, just excreted this morning. Would you like to have a sniff, student?"