Animals stay cool at safari park

Animals at a safari park in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, are cooling off and avoiding the summer heat by jumping into ponds or playing with blocks of ice.

In addition to sleeping over an ice block, giant pandas at Guangzhou Chimelong Safari Park — home to the world's only panda triplets — have tried traditional herbal tea and specially made ice cream and cakes to avoid the scorching weather.

A giant panda festival has been launched in the park, with a ceremony to celebrate the 9th birthday of the triplets scheduled for the end of July.

A baby proboscis monkey, born on May 1, played in a pond inside the park with its 13-year-old mother, who had helped nurture 11 baby proboscis monkeys.

The park authority said more measures would be introduced to help animals avoid the heat during the summer holiday.