Unsuspecting visitors waiting to see Edinburgh Zoo’s new giant pandas have become the victims of a jealous penguin rage.
The UK’s only pair of such pandas, Tian Tian and Yang Guang, arrived from China last month and the zoo has seen a noticeable increase in the number of people coming to catch a glimpse of them.
But not everyone is excited by the new arrivals.
The BBC reports several rockhopper penguins, whose enclosure neighbours the pandas’ enclosure, could be suffering from a case of “monochrome jealousy” and are taking their envy out on innocent bystanders.
A 41-year-old zoo-goer, who didn’t want to be named said: “We were queuing to see the pandas when a man in front shouted out in surprise that his jacket had been hit by a big dollop of penguin poo.
“It was really oily and stank of fish. It was disgusting.”
Gary Wilson, director of business operations at the zoo said the birds have been particularly interested in the pandas ever since they arrived at their new home.
“[They’re] extremely curious birds, they often gather next to the wall to see what’s happening below. We’re hoping it’s not a case of monochrome jealousy, but one or two of our rockhoppers seem to have had surprisingly good aim,” Mr Wilson said.
Most of those unfortunate enough to cop the brunt of the poo pelting have laughed it off, however, the zoo plans to install a glass panel to protect visitors from future attacks.
