Eats, shoots and cake: The peckish pandas who love nothing more than tucking into sweet treats

By Emma Clark Everybody deserves a to treat themselves with a slice of freshly baked cake now and again - even a group of playful pandas. The gang of giant pandas were delighted to be included in the Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations in China yesterday, a public bank holiday in the country. Staff at Chime-Long Xiangjiang Safari Park treated them to specially made Chinese 'mooncakes', a cake traditionally enjoyed by the population during the lunar harvest festival.

A cute young panda gazes up in hope at a 'mooncake' passed into his cage on the tip of a bamboo stick

A group of the hungry giant pandas quickly gather to tuck into the sweet treats being handed out The public watched on in delight as the individual cakes were passed on the tip of bamboo canes to the stars of the Chimelong Panda Centre, who were licking their lips in excited anticipation. Amusing photographs show the group hungrily reaching for the sweet treats before playfully scrapping with each other for a bite. But some of the lucky ones were pictured contently tucking into their share after sneaking off alone.

An eager panda licks his lips as the mooncake approaches, while the rest climb over each other to get closer

Not for sharing: A trio of the pandas playfully grapple over one of the cakes The centre covers an area of over 10000 square meters with a setting of mountains and ponds as well as plenty of bamboo. The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most important holidays in the Chinese calendar, celebrated on the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, where the population enjoy matchmaking dances, fire dragon displays and lighting lanterns as well as admiring the full moon.

Finally... one of the contented pandas gets a moment of peace to enjoy his afternoon tea alone source:dailymail