The April Fool Archive

Pandas in the Pyrenees    (April Fool's Day - 2013)

Television channel France 3 revealed that the French government planned to release giant pandas in the Pyrenees, as part of the continuing reintroduction of bears to the region. Negotiations with the Chinese government were ongoing, but it was hoped that the first panda pair could be introduced in the spring of 2014.

Of course, pandas eat mainly bamboo. This was seen as a positive, as it meant the pandas were unlikely to attack farm animals. However, bamboo is not found in the pyrenees. Therefore, the plan was to use a helicopter to fly several tons of bamboo to the pandas every week.

Naturalists also appreciated that the pandas were two-tone. Their black fur would be easy to spot in the snow, and conversely, their white fur would reflect car headlights, possibly averting tragic accidents such as happened in August 2007 when a bear was killed by a vehicle.


More content from the Hoax Museum:

Comments