Fireworks likely caused the death of a baby red panda at Edinburgh Zoo after she became so stressed that she choked on her own vomit, experts from the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZSS) said on Thursday.
Three-month-old Roxie died on November 5, known as Bonfire Night in the UK when several firework displays light up the night sky to mark the anniversary of a failed plot to blow up London’s Houses of Parliament in 1605.
Roxie’s mother Ginger had died a few days earlier but the baby red panda “was responding well to specialist care from our expert team and was feeding independently,” said RZSS deputy chief executive Ben Supple in a statement.
“Roxie had access to her den but the frightening noises seem to have been too much for her,” he added. “We know that fireworks can cause stress to other animals in the zoo and we cannot rule out that they may have contributed to the untimely death of Roxie’s mother Ginger, just five days’ earlier.”
Red pandas are classified as an endangered species, with their numbers decreasing in the wild.
RZSS, a wildlife conservation charity that runs Edinburgh Zoo, is now calling for tighter restrictions on fireworks given the risks they pose to animal welfare. The organization also pointed to a public petition that has been signed by more than 1 million people and was delivered to the UK government last week.
Its stance aligns with other animal welfare organizations like the RSPCA, which said it had received more than 13,000 survey responses in three years describing animals’ fear responses to fireworks.
There have been other instances of animals dying as a result of fireworks. Like Roxie, a baby zebra died after being spooked by the sounds of fireworks at Bristol Zoo in November 2020.
“Fireworks can cause fear and distress for pets, livestock and animals in zoos, so it is essential that the UK and Scottish governments tighten restrictions on their sale and use,” Supple added.
“We support calls from animal welfare charities to ban the sale of fireworks to the public, with only light displays being permitted at organised events. This would help avoid devastating consequences for animals like Roxie while ensuring that people can still enjoy traditional celebrations,” he said.
Currently, it is illegal to set off fireworks in the UK between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. except for Bonfire Night, New Year’s Eve, Diwali and Chinese New Year. Fireworks can be sold by registered sellers for private use between October 15 and November 10, December 26-31 and the three days before Diwali and Chinese New Year.
A 2019 parliamentary inquiry into the issue concluded that a ban on public sales of fireworks would likely be “ineffective” and have a “substantial economic effect.” However, it recommended that the government work with animal welfare experts to set a reduced maximum noise level, and with local authorities to limit the number of private firework displays at events like birthdays or weddings.
“We are sorry to hear of the death of Roxie the panda and our thoughts are with the team who cared for her at Edinburgh Zoo,” a spokesperson for the Department for Business and Trade told CNN Thursday.
“We endeavour to keep pets and the public safe and that’s why we launched a new fireworks safety campaign this season to help people use them safely and appropriately.”
Scotland’s community safety minister Siobhian Brown told CNN in a statement that the Scottish government doesn’t have the power to completely resolve the issue, saying that she has written to the UK government requesting a meeting “to discuss what more can be done on fireworks regulations.”
