An exchange of a pair of African penguins from the Taipei Zoo for a pair of red pandas from the Shanghai Zoo would be finalized in the first half of next year, an official said yesterday.
The pandas are currently waiting to take the second of two rabies vaccination jabs before they can come to Taiwan, Taipei Zoo director Ju Shiau-fen (朱孝芬) told the Taipei City Council.
As for Taipei’s penguins, the zoo is still confirming which avian flu vaccine is approved by the Shanghai Zoo.
Photo: CNA
After quarantine procedures are complete on both sides, the two zoos would plan the exchange procedures for the beginning of next year, as weather conditions would be more suitable for transporting the animals, she said.
The exchange was based on a memorandum of understanding signed by the two cities at the Taipei-Shanghai City Forum held in Taipei in December last year.
In the wake of this year’s forum — originally slated for last month — being postponed, Taipei City Councilor Chen You-cheng (陳宥丞) of the Taiwan People’s Party asked whether the exchange may be disrupted.
He also urged the zoo to be cautious when naming the red pandas to avoid sparking negative political sentiment among the public.
Ju said the zoo would take appropriate measures during the naming discussions.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
A magnitude 5.3 earthquake struck Kaohsiung at 1pm today, the Central Weather Administration said. The epicenter was in Jiasian District (甲仙), 72.1km north-northeast of Kaohsiung City Hall, at a depth of 7.8km, agency data showed. There were no immediate reports of damage. The earthquake's intensity, which gauges the actual effects of a temblor, was highest in Kaohsiung and Tainan, where it measured a 4 on Taiwan's seven-tier intensity scale. It also measured a 3 in parts of Chiayi City, as well as Pingtung, Yunlin and Hualien counties, data showed.
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
Taiwan next year plans to launch its first nationwide census on elderly people living independently to identify the estimated 700,000 seniors to strengthen community-based healthcare and long-term care services, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) said yesterday. Minister of Health and Welfare Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said on the sidelines of a healthcare seminar that the nation’s rapidly aging population and declining birthrate have made the issue of elderly people living alone increasingly pressing. The survey, to be jointly conducted by the MOHW and the Ministry of the Interior, aims to establish baseline data and better allocate care resources, he
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