US-born panda lands after leaving DC zoo
BEIJING: A US-born panda started settling into her new home yesterday in southwest China where she will eventually join a breeding programme.
Bao Bao was born at the National Zoo in Washington, DC, to panda parents on loan from China.
Under an agreement between China and the US, such panda cubs must be returned to China before they are four years old, the earliest age at which they might begin breeding.
The three-year-old landed in the city of Chengdu in Sichuan province on Wednesday after a 16-hour flight in a Boeing 777 emblazoned with a picture of a giant bamboo-eating panda.
She was accompanied by a veterinarian panda keeper Marty Dearie from the National Zoo, which had put on six days of commemorations to mark her departure.
Transported to the nearby Dujiangyan panda breeding base, Bao Bao emerged from her crate looking somewhat timid and curious, but soon settled in with a snack of fresh bamboo, according to a news release from the China Conservation and Research Centre for Giant Pandas. Bao Bao, whose name means “precious” or “treasure”, will first go through a month-long quarantine at the Dujiangyan base, the research centre said.
Keepers will monitor her diet, activities and health during that time, including checking her blood and faeces, it said.
“Once Bao Bao the panda completes this month of quarantine, she’ll go on display to the public and I welcome everyone to come see her then,” research centre expert
Li Desheng was quoted as saying in the news release. A 100 sq m enclosure has been prepared for her at the base, including both indoor and outdoor play areas, equipped with rubber balls and a tyres swing for entertainment and fresh bamboo and apples for eating.
Keepers will work on helping Bao Bao adapt to local bamboo and Chinese steamed bread made from corn, soybeans, rice and eggs, the official Xinhua News Agency said.