Simi’s loser and winner of the day

Loser

Two people named Camille and Julien who visited the La Palmyre zoo in France yesterday

Staff at a French zoo condemned on Wednesday the "stupidity" of visitors who scratched their names into the back of a rhino.

A photograph of the 35-year-old female rhinoceros with the words "Camille" and "Julien" on its back has been widely shared on social media, triggering an outcry.

La Palmyre zoo in Royan in southwestern France said in a statement it was "outraged by the stupidity and disrespect" of the visitors but would not be taking legal action.

Animal lovers can touch the creatures when they approach the fence of their enclosure, it said, a "moving" experience which allows visitors to appreciate "the diversity and beauty of nature".

Three of the five species of rhino are critically endangered, largely due to the lucrative poaching trade.

Zoo director Pierre Caille said the visitors used their nails to scratch their names into a layer of dust, sand and dead skin on the animal's back.

"The animal may not even have realised," he told AFP. "We quickly brushed the writing away and there was no harm to the animal".

Winner

Heidi Erickson from Airdrie, Alberta and 7 year old Duncan MacMaster from Nova Scotia 

Seven-year-old Duncan will soon be reunited with the teddy bear he lost while on vacation in Alberta. 

The bear contains an emotional voice message left by the boy’s mother prior to her death.

The bear would have remained lost if it weren’t for Airdrie resident Heidi Erickson…

Loser

Two people named Camille and Julien who visited the La Palmyre zoo in France yesterday

Staff at a French zoo condemned on Wednesday the "stupidity" of visitors who scratched their names into the back of a rhino.

A photograph of the 35-year-old female rhinoceros with the words "Camille" and "Julien" on its back has been widely shared on social media, triggering an outcry.

La Palmyre zoo in Royan in southwestern France said in a statement it was "outraged by the stupidity and disrespect" of the visitors but would not be taking legal action.
 
Animal lovers can touch the creatures when they approach the fence of their enclosure, it said, a "moving" experience which allows visitors to appreciate "the diversity and beauty of nature".

Three of the five species of rhino are critically endangered, largely due to the lucrative poaching trade.

Zoo director Pierre Caille said the visitors used their nails to scratch their names into a layer of dust, sand and dead skin on the animal's back.

"The animal may not even have realised," he told AFP. "We quickly brushed the writing away and there was no harm to the animal".

Winner

Heidi Erickson from Airdrie, Alberta and 7 year old Duncan MacMaster from Nova Scotia 

Seven-year-old Duncan will soon be reunited with the teddy bear he lost while on vacation in Alberta. 
The bear contains an emotional voice message left by the boy’s mother prior to her death.
The bear would have remained lost if it weren’t for Airdrie resident Heidi Erickson…