The San Diego Zoo opened a long-awaited giant panda exhibit to the public on Thursday, breathing new life into U.S.-Chinese panda diplomacy and delighting panda fans in California.
The special public unveiling of 鈥淧anda Ridge鈥� was slated for noon local time on Thursday 鈥� a date proclaimed by Gov. Gavin Newsom as California Panda Day as he welcomed 鈥渆nvoys of friendship鈥� from China.
The older panda, Yun Chuan (pronounced 鈥測oon chu-an,鈥� according to the zoo), is a male who is nearly 5 years old.
鈥淗is mother Zhen Zhen was born in 2007 and was the fourth cub born at the San Diego Zoo. He鈥檚 identifiable by his long, slightly pointed nose,鈥� the zoo said.
Xin Bao (pronounced 鈥渟ing bao鈥�), a female, is almost 4. Her distinguishing features include a 鈥渓arge, round face and big, fluffy ears,鈥� the zoo said.
HERE COMES THE DROP 馃惣 Panda Ridge opens tomorrow, August 8 at noon.
— San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (@sandiegozoo)
They鈥檙e the first pandas to come to the United States in 21 years.
People wanting to visit the zoo on Thursday should expect 鈥済iant crowds, and heavy traffic,鈥� according to NPR .
The that in addition to a standby line that opened hours before the exhibit, it would issue complimentary timed tickets to see the pandas. The zoo also offers a one-hour early-morning walking tour focusing on the animals, with a price starting at $92.
The San Diego Zoo has a long history of housing pandas, but it recently went five years without the well-loved animal after its last two pandas, Bai Yun and Xiao Liwu, were removed from their home in Panda Canyon in the spring of 2019.
The Smithsonian鈥檚 National Zoo in Washington, D.C., also said farewell to its pandas in what struck many local fans as an abrupt departure. For much of this year, Zoo Atlanta was the only U.S. zoo with giant pandas.
But earlier this year, both the and announced they will also see the return of giant pandas, likely by the end of 2024 and in 2025, respectively, as Chinese officials have made fresh agreements with their U.S. counterparts.
China first sent pandas to the U.S. in 1972, in a program that was seen as both a relationship-building exercise for the two countries and a chance for conservation experts to collaborate to help the black-and-white bears鈥� population rebound.
Since then, giant pandas have come to the U.S. under a loan program, with the animals and their offspring remaining the property of China. Those loans were often extended, but the deals have shown the strain of in recent years.
In 2016, the International Union for the Conservation of Nature giant pandas on its list of threatened species, classifying them as 鈥渧ulnerable鈥� to extinction rather than endangered.
Copyright 2024 NPR
