With two new cubs being born and Mei Sheng going to China, it's been awhile since we looked into to see what 1 year old Mei Lan at Zoo Atlanta has been up too.
Lani, my nickname for her, is usually snoozing when I turn on the webcam at 10:00 am. The Carnivore keepers come in around 7:00 am to get Yang, Lun and Mei Lan ready for their day. They say Lun and Lani are usually up playing, while Yang is still asleep. So I 
suppose, by ten, the little princess is tuckered out and needs a nap.
The Carnivore keepers are really great at publishing a log Monday, Wednesday and Friday on their website. This way, if you aren't able to keep up everyday with the goings on of Miss Lani, then these 
logs will help. As expected Mei Lan is continuing to grow, she's up to 66 pounds! She has started chewing on bamboo and actually ingesting very small pieces. She is still nursing and receiving most of her nourishment from that, but the keepers are seeing her handling branches of boo more often now. Whether or not she is able to actually peel off the outside of the branch to get to the tasty inside, is yet to be seen.
She absolutely loves playing with her mom, even if Lun is trying to eat and doesn't want to play, Lani will just keep pulling and tugging on Lun until she finally gives in and plays with her. Sometime after noon, is when Lani will nurse and then proceed to take another nap.
So, here are some recent photos of Mei Lan. They were taken by bob2cleo, who lives very close to Zoo Atlanta and is kind enough to post her photos onto several of the Panda groups on flickr. Enjoy!
