This morning, the Louisville Zoo celebrated the arrival of the red panda Sundara, also called Sunny D.
The one-year-old male, whose species is endangered, came from the Kansas City Zoo and is the first red panda at the Louisville Zoo since the 1970s.
His current home is in Glacier Run, inside an exhibit space that used to house snowy owls.
In a press release, Louisville Zoo director Dan Maloney said, “There are so many fun things to learn about this unique species that we haven’t seen at the Zoo since the early days. While one might think they are in the bear family, they are actually in a taxonomic group that shares common traits with mustelids like raccoons, weasels and skunks. We are very excited to have red pandas back at the Zoo and to be sharing this species with Kentuckiana.”
