Marwell Zoo's only red panda welcomes arrival of new companion

Marwell Zoo's male red panda has welcomed a new companion.

Cherry has travelled from Wales - to set up home at the Hampshire park with Tashi.

At seven years old, she'll share the red panda habitat with Tashi.

Cherry, who is seven years old, will be in pod 1, closest to the walkthrough aviary while she gets used to her new home.

Carrie Arnold, Carnivores Team Leader, said: “We’re excited to welcome Cherry to Marwell where she will share our red panda habitat with Tashi.

“Red pandas are endangered in the wild where they have been hunted for meat, medicine and fur as well as being sold into the pet market.

“Whilst they may look cute, they have very sharp teeth and claws and fur over their whole bodies including under their paws.

“Red pandas also have a “false thumb” which is an enlargement of one of the bones in their wrist. It allows them to grab and hold onto things, mainly bamboo, and climb down trees headfirst!”

Tashi will have access to pods 2 and 3 until our keepers decide they’re ready to be mixed in a few weeks’ time.

In the wild, red pandas can be found living in the trees of the Himalayas. They prefer to live near water, where bamboo is plentiful.

They eat young leaves and shoots of bamboo, fruit, roots, succulent grasses, acorns, lichens, bird eggs and insects.

The species is classified as Endangered on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List with populations continuing to decline.

It is thought that in the last 18 years, red panda populations have decreased by 50% with fewer than 10,000 left in the wild.

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