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Squirrels in China being overfed by tourists

According to Chinese social media, the squirrels now look like "Totoro" - a famous spiritual creature from Hayao Miyazaki's animation.

squirrel

Source: sina weibo

According to reports on Chinese social media platform Sina, squirrels at feeding stations near West Lake in Hang Zhou have been overfed by generous tourists.

Reported by Hang Zhou local media, tourists at the nearby lake like to feed these friendly cuties while taking pictures with them. Sometimes they even have to queue because of the overwhelming crowd.

squirrel
Image via Sina Source: sina weibo

'Corn on stick' is one of the more popular foods to feed the creatures.

One Weibo user posted a picture of one squirrel in 2014 when they still seemed "fit and swift":

squirrel
by新浪微博@牛奶花粥: 还有前年12月,体态还是轻盈的。 Source: weibo

But the latest pictures show that the squirrels apparently have put on some weight. 

Local reports have urged people not to overfeed the animals as overfeeding may cause digestion and other health problems.

squirrel
Source: weibo

Can you see the resemblance to 'Totoro' now?

Squirrel vs Totoro
Squirrel vs Totoro Source: Sina


1 min read

Published

Updated

By Heidi Han




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