Hooray! Look, a family of red pandas at Buttes-Chaumont park!

We all know the animals that call the Père Lachaise cemetery their home. But have you ever wondered about the creatures that inhabit the Buttes-Chaumont park? It's not just pigeons and city rats, you know. The latest buzz is that a cute little family of red pandas have decided to settle down in this vast green space in the 19th arrondissement. Red pandas are like the adorable, more beautiful, and softer version of raccoons (who don't go through trash cans, by the way). They come from the Himalayan forests, and can be found in Nepal, India, Bhutan, China, Tibet, and Myanmar. You might be wondering, why are they in the heart of Paris? Well, the answer is simple: red pandas were once brought to Paris, specifically to the Jardin des Plantes zoo, also known as La Ménagerie, where a couple of charming red pandas used to reside. Visitors would spend hours watching them munch on bamboo, utterly delighted by their presence.

The Good Life at Buttes-Chaumont

For a few months now, these adorable pandas have been missing from La Ménagerie, not without being noticed. Rumors say that the couple has passed away, with the male even succumbing after a bad fall. In reality, the bamboo lovers packed up and decided to settle, in freedom (because it's just a bit more fun), in the Buttes-Chaumont park.

Here, they have started their little family, in complete tranquility, in the shade of the large trees that remind them of their origins. The kids enjoy small swimming sessions in the pond, the parents sunbathe on the grass in the afternoons, and together they snack here and there on flowers, roots, mushrooms and sometimes even on lost little mice (after all, it's quite tasty). Keep a close eye: if they are not too shy, they might even say hello to you!© Jose Angel Astor Rocha /Shutterstock

P.-S. : Before we conclude, have you checked the date today? Always keep a hint of skepticism... because as tradition has it, April 1st is often synonymous with mischief, and at Le Bonbon, we love pranks. Don't be too disappointed, our jokes have sometimes come true in the past... You never know.