New | Chinese tourists invade drained lake at zoo to harvest fresh mussels in animals’ enclosure
Intruders ignore warnings that shellfish might not be safe to eat
The animals at the zoo in Zhengzhou, capital of northern China’s Henan province, have not seen predators for decades, but their peaceful life ended on Sunday with the arrival of hundreds of tourists looking for food, according to local news website.
As workers drained water out of the zoo’s man-made lake in the zoo for maintenance and an upgrade, some sharp-eye tourists spotted mussels at the exposed muddy bottom of the lake, Dahe.cn reported.
READ MORE: Peacocks in zoo die from shock after Chinese tourists’ ‘violent behaviour’, picking them up and plucking out their feathers
They rolled up trousers and sleeves and jumped into the mud, and were soon joined by several hundred others including parents and their children.
Mussels are a delicacy in Chinese cuisine. They can be cooked in dozens of ways, from fried dishes to soup.
A member of staff at the zoo said they tried to stop the tourists with warnings that the mussels might not be safe to eat, but their friendly advice was ignored.
READ MORE: Parts of Beijing Zoo may relocate from city centre to improve animals’ living conditions and ease traffic jams
“These mussels are alive. We dig them up not to eat, but to let our children experience the pleasure of digging mussels,” said a woman standing in mud with bare feet.
“I will take these mussels home and put them in water so my children can observe them,” she added. The family left with a sack full.
