Planet of the vapes: Chain-smoking chimp puffs away on cigarettes - and even knows how to use a lighter
A chain-smoking chimp is pulling in the crowds at a newly-opened zoo in North Korea where she has developed a 20-a-day habit, the Daily Mail reports.
The star of the zoo in the country's capital Pyongyang is Azalea, who has taught herself how to light her own cigarettes.
She now gets through a pack a day and has even picked up on how to feed her habit if there is no lighter available - by igniting her smokes with a discarded cigarette.
The chimp also goes by the Korean name Dalle, and her trainer at the zoo helps feed her habit.
Though it would be frowned upon in many countries, locals are lapping it up at the attraction which re-opened in July.
The 19-year-old is one of two chimpanzees at the zoo, and visitors roared with laughter when she sat puffing away inside her enclosure today.
Her trainer egged her on, but insisted she does not inhale the smoke.
Azalea was also prompted to touch her nose, bow thank you and dance.
The zoo is pulling in thousands of visitors a day with a slew of attractions ranging from elephants, giraffes, penguins and monkeys to a high-tech natural history museum with displays showing the origins of the solar system and the evolution of life on earth.
Another of the most popular attractions that might come as a surprise to foreign visitors is the dog pavilion, which features everyday breeds like German shepherds and Shih Tsus.
The zoo also has performances featuring other animals trained to do tricks, including a monkey that slam dunks basketballs, dogs trained to use an abacus and doves that fly around and land on a woman skating on an indoor stage.
Renovations for the new zoo began in 2014 as part of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's efforts to create more modern and impressive structures and leisure centers around the capital.
The zoo actually dates back to 1959, when Kim Il Sung, the nation's first leader and the grandfather of Kim Jong Un, ordered for it to be built on the outskirts of the city.
According to its official history, the zoo started off with only 50 badgers.
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