SIXTH TONE
SIXTH TONE
The Man Shepherding China’s Best Zoo Through Its Worst Year
Balancing animals’ dignity and visitors’ entertainment was already a tall order, and then the pandemic hit.
This story is part of a weekend column featuring translations from respected Chinese media outlets, as selected and edited by Sixth Tone. All are reproduced with the outlets’ permission. A version of this article was first published in
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JIANGSU, East China Last year during the pandemic, when Nanjing’s Hongshan Forest Zoo had to shut its doors, it often seemed to nevertheless have one guest: Shen Zhijun, the zoo’s director. He often wandered the grounds on his own, cutting a solitary figure with his head bowed. Shen is familiar with all the sounds here such as the calls of parrots, cranes, and pheasants on Fangniu Hill. In the afternoon, the wolves congregate to howl first, followed by the tigers roaring a few hours later. Throughout, the gibbons sing.