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BEIJING - A Chinese zoo is to hold a Valentine's Day wedding for a male sheep and a female deer whose unconventional relationship captured the public imagination, the official Xinhua news agency said Monday.

Visitors have flooded to the wildlife park in the southwestern province of Yunnan to see the sheep, whose Chinese name Changmao means long hair, and the deer, Chunzi (pure), after zookeepers revealed online that the pair had begun mating.

The wildlife park is to issue 500 special tickets, at 66 yuan (around $10) apiece, for the occasion, the state-run China News Service reported.

But experts warned against attaching human qualities to animals.

"Leaving them alone is the best choice," Xinhua quoted biologist Wang Dajun as saying.

Image: AFP