Panda takes excursion into town in southwestern China

AP  |  Beijing 

A highly social out for a stroll has surprised and delighted residents of a town in the southwestern Chinese province of

The panda was first spotted wandering among houses in county yesterday, seemingly in search of She strolled beside a vegetable garden, trotted across a dirt road and climbed a tree, seemingly unfazed by the attention she drew from a large group of onlookers.

Researchers at the China Conservation and Research Center for the confirmed that the panda was Zhenzhen, an 11-year-old female raised in captivity and recently released into the wild as part of a special breeding project.

After allowing her several hours to explore, researchers returned to the Shenshuping Panda Base by mid-afternoon.

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First Published: Fri, June 01 2018. 15:45 IST