I have a wildlife zoo

Next, Fang Ye made another trip to the rescue center.

He greeted Lin Ying and checked on the recent rescues of a few collared scops owlets.

The little guys were still too young, so instead of placing them in outdoor enclosures, they were being raised in a room inside the animal hospital.

An artificial tree hollow-like nest had been provided for them, lined with dry straw, and they were usually fed after dark, mimicking the nocturnal habits of owls in the wild.

The four collared scops owlets were all bowing their heads and sleeping in the nest.

Sensing the light at the entrance had disappeared, they lifted their heads.
Stay connected with My Virtual Library Empire

They discovered a bipedal beast peering at them through the entrance and immediately began to round their eyes nervously, their bodies swaying up, down, left, and right, with their heads circling.

This was their way of deterring enemies!

One was still groggily asleep, and when shaken awake by its buddy beside it, it hurriedly started to sway as well.

All the collared scops owlets widened their eyes and swung their heads in unison, a devilish scene that looked inexplicably comical.

Fang Ye couldn't help but curl the corners of his mouth, reminded of the classic Jim Carrey's head-shaking trio!

Accompanied by music, a very groovy head bobbing, so similar to the little ones' antics.

"They seem to be in good shape!"

Putting on a bird-head puppet, he used tweezers to clip some tender chicken meat and delivered it to the nest entrance.

The collared scops owlets, seeing the food, cautiously stretched out their heads, grasped the chicken meat, and quickly retracted their heads to eat.

Another piece was offered, and this time a different one poked its head out to feed.

Their wariness and vigilance towards humans suggested they were wild, which would make release back into the wild easier as they grew.

After leaving the room, Fang Ye had a brief meeting with Lin Ying and other veterinarians to discuss the release of the ruddy shelducks.

The ruddy shelducks had recovered some health after some time in captivity and could now flap their wings to fly a distance within the cage.

However, after being previously bred in a farm, their flight ability was much weaker than that of wild ruddy shelducks.

If released abruptly into Linhai's reservoir, they might lack agility and vigilance, becoming easy prey for raptors within a few days.

After the discussion, they decided to adopt a gentler method of soft release!

This batch of ruddy shelducks would be placed in a several-thousand-square-meter lake located behind the zoo, which was being prepared to serve as Waterfowl Lake.

Now that the surrounding roads, restrooms, and park benches were all set up, and with the introduction of animals like swans, it was ready to be a tourist attraction.

By conducting a soft release, they could let the ruddy shelducks acclimate to living in the aquatic environment and further recover their health.

The zoo could also provide daily food for them, ensuring their survival.

They were not confined; they were free to leave whenever they wanted, and the zoo, located on the outskirts, was itself a suitable release site.

...

The rescue center's staff brought the ruddy shelducks to Waterfowl Lake.

As soon as the top of the box was opened, eager ruddy shelducks poked their heads out!

"Goo-goo-goo-goo~" "Quack~ quack~ quack~"

Loudly calling, they excitedly stepped on the edge of the box, flapped their wings, and flew out, tracing a beautiful arc into the water.

Upon hitting the water, a flick of their webbed feet sent them smoothly gliding a meter away.

Some stood on the edge of the box, gathering their strength slowly. One that hadn't quite steadied itself was nudged by a companion eager to get out, and it tumbled awkwardly onto the bank's stones, slipping down the slope into the water.

One by one, the ruddy shelducks flew out of the box and into the lake!

In the water, they twisted their necks and bottoms, dunked their heads in, flapped their wings a couple of times, and splashed water.

They repeated the motion, cleaning their feathers.

Long caged, they were now returning to nature!

So excited they couldn't stand it.

Some were quite timid, hiding inside the cage, not daring to come out, burrowing into the corner. The staff had to stand the box up and tilt it to dump them out.

There were also those who didn't like to get in the water, just staying active on the shore.

...

This weekend, the zoo's rice planting activity started again.

Last time, they just scattered rice seeds into the mud, patted them down with a broom – it was very simple, and many children weren't satisfied when it ended so soon.

In the recent weeks, visitors coming to the zoo on the weekends would always make a special trip to check on the growth of the rice.

The first week they came, the rice seeds had just broken through the soil, sprouting tender little green shoots.

Every week they came back, the shoots had grown a lot taller!

Now, a month had passed, and the shoots were as tall as a person's forearm.

They were growing densely together, and at this point, the original space was no longer sufficient.

They had to pull them out of the ground and replant them at certain intervals – this step was called transplanting.

The seedlings had already been pulled out, and the paddy field had been prepared once more.

The activity was scheduled to start at 8:30 in the morning!

Taking advantage of the early time before the sun was fully up and it was still relatively cool, they went down to the fields to transplant.

After the zoo opened, many of the children and their parents participating in the activity arrived at the little ranch area.

Tang Xiaoxin and Qian Keke were among the first to sign up for the farming activity, both assigned to the rice fields.

The two little girls excitedly waved their arms: "Brother Fang Ye!"

Fang Ye smiled and nodded: "Yo, hello there!"

Tang Xiaoxin curiously asked, "Brother Fang Ye, I haven't seen you the last few times I was at the zoo. Where were you?"

Fang Ye stroked his chin, laughing, "Well, I just took a trip to Qinghai, to see the snow leopards, the Pallas's cats, the grassland and golden eagles, and such. Rescuing a snow leopard – just some trivial matters."

Tang Xiaoxin's eyes widened in amazement: "Ah!"

A little chubby boy, overhearing him, was instantly excited: "I know the snow leopard; it is the king of the snowy mountains!"

Even though these children had never heard of animals like the Pallas's cat or snow leopard, the title 'king of the snowy mountains' sounded very impressive!

"Brother Fang Ye, does the snow leopard listen to you too? Did you get to touch it?"

"What is a Pallas's cat? Is it a rabbit?"

They all badgered him with questions!

The parents stood by, watching the scene with smiles on their faces.

Zoo Director Fang was not only popular with the animals but also beloved by the children.

Seeing that things were getting a bit chaotic, Fang Ye hurriedly said, "Ah, that's a long story, let's wait until we're done with the fieldwork. Then, I'll tell you all about it, okay?"

He looked around, feeling that plenty of people had already arrived, and clapped his hands: "Let's do a roll call! To see if we're all here."

With such a fun activity and their admired director present, the children were very eager to participate.

Many had set their alarms early and had been calling on their parents to come over since the morning.

Except for one parent who had mentioned in the group chat that they had to take the day off due to an emergency, saying they had to take their child to see a doctor, the rest had arrived.

Then came the distribution of gear.

You could choose to enter the field barefoot, or wear the waterproof waders and rubber boots provided by the zoo.

Tang Xiaoxin initially wanted to wear the gear, but seeing Qian Keke enthusiastically taking off her shoes, she thought that going barefoot might be more fun and also took off her own shoes.