Pandas Live on

Xi Lan of Zoo Atlanta celebrates his 1st Birthday!

Sunday, August 30th, 2009, marked Xi Lan's first birthday at Zoo Atlanta.  The keepers put together a very special multi-layered 'ice cake' with sweet potato's inside along with some papermache' balloons

Thanks to bob2cleo who was there to see the celebration first hand, they brought back some great videos and photos of the party.  It didn't take him long to get into the festivities.    

Thanks so much, to the panda keepers and staff that do such a great job of caring for this panda family. Not only have they done a magnificent job of raising two cubs with their adults, but they have produced a tremendous amount of research that will undoubtedly contribute to the longevity of giant pandas for generations to come. Be sure to show your support for this valuable program and participate in their - Give So They Stay organization!

Xi Lan is the second panda cub born to Lun Lun at Zoo Atlanta.  Lun had Mei Lan, on September 6, 2006, she is still at the zoo but is scheduled to go to China sometime this year or first of 2010 to participate in the breeding program there.  Yang Yang is the father of both cubs who were born through artificial insemination. 

Check out Fu Long's 2nd birthday celebration! UPDATED

We have another video that Jola, who has a wonderful panda blog called Pandas, Pandas, Pandas.

I wanted to be sure and share it with you since Fu will be going to China at the end of this year and we won't have the chance to see him as often then. Be sure to go to follow the link above, so you can see the whole collection of Fu and Yang photos, enjoying the big ice birthday cake.

Thanks, Jola for sharing these with us.

Fu Long who lives at the Vienna Zoo in Austria just recently, August 23, 2009, celebrated his 2nd birthday.  Thanks to the keepers at the zoo, they provided him with a fancy 'ice cake' that included a huge #2 to commemorate this special day. 

Thanks to Lupoforme of You Tube, who went and recorded this special event for us to enjoy.  Thanks for sharing this sweet moment, Lupo.  I loved watching Fu keeping an eye on his mom to see what she was doing with 'his' cake! 

Beautiful Mei Xiang of the Smithsonian National Zoo

We all have images in our heads of giant pandas sitting and eating bamboo, seemingly oblivious to those of us who stop by to see them.  But for those who go to see the pandas on a regular basis, through their photos, they give us a chance to see a more personal side of these gorgeous animals. 

Take a look at these wonderful photos that Unka Bobby, as he is known on flickr, got of Mei Xiang who just turned 11 years old in July and who has a four year old son, Tai Shan.  You can't tell me, when you look at these photos, that  her inner and outer beauty don't reach out and touch you.  Thanks, Bobby for sharing these great photos.   

 

 

Panda, Animal & Nature film week starts in Ya'an, China

Second China International Animal and Nature Film Festival  starts tomorrow, August 19 and runs through the 25th.  The website is touting it as Panda, Animal & Nature week. 

"The International Animal & Nature Film Festival in China is aimed at showing the films about the Nature (documentaries, fiction, education, animation...), especially those related to animals, and the relationship between animals and nature. It is also intended to sensitize the media, officials, and the general public to protect the environment and nature."

They have a video that introduces the festival by showing clips of the people from Ya'an, its culture, its famous 'Sichuan Cuisine' and tea fields.  Along with that video, they also put together a couple of other videos showing panda cubs including  sound, so you can hear the cubs as they wrestle and play.

They have 20 films they will be showing, from Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Hungary, Netherlands, New Zealand, Iran, Swiss, UK and U.S. 

All of this coincides with the 140th anniversary of the introduction of the giant panda by Pere Jean Pierre Armand David a French Catholic missionary who first discovered the giant panda in 1869. 

Pere proved himself to be a serious plant collector for France, sending many samples from China back to Paris, designing ways to preserve them with glass jars and wooden boxes. 

He was taking a break from one of his excursions across China, when a landowner invited him in for some tea.  Inside, he discovered the skin of a giant panda hanging from the wall.  Intrigued with this, he arranged to have hunters bring one back for him.  They returned with a panda but they had killed it to make it easier for them to transport.  He asked them to return with a live one. It is disputed as to what became of the live giant panda that Pere had obtained but it was he who first alerted the world of its existence by sending photos of it back to Paris. 

A hike was set up for those panda lovers to retrace Pere's famous trek.  Twenty brave souls from around the country departed from the West China Medical School of Sichuan University in Chengdu, the provincial capital of Sichuan. 

They passed health checks before the 350-km (over 217 miles) journey that will not only provide beautiful scenery but also steep, dangerous mountain paths.   

They began their trek on Saturday, 15th of August and are expected to arrive at the Ya'an Bifengxia Breeding Base of the CCPPRC, China Giant Panda Protection and Research Center of the Wolong Nature Reserve, on August 25, 2009.  

If only I was so, so young again, I would have loved to make that hike myself.  This may be an event to plan a trip around for next year. 

It's Pandas and "Pandamonium" Flavored Ice Cream at Atlanta Zoo

Xi Lan

By Keisha Hines-Davis Atlanta, GA - There’s a scoop of sweet news for Atlanta’s giant panda fans and ice cream lovers. Jake’s Ice Cream introduces “Pandamonium,” an all-new flavor created exclusively to support Zoo Atlanta’s Give So They Stay campaign. A delectable fusion of Sencha green tea, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg with a sweet cream base, “Pandamonium” is the brainchild of Kyle Rosen, who designed the recipe, and John Gandy, who suggested that Zoo Atlanta earn a portion of proceeds generated by each scoop sold.

Both Rosen and Gandy are participants in Jake’s Ice Cream’s SunTrust summer internship program. “This is a dream come true for me. I’m a lifelong lover of the Zoo,” said Jake Rothschild, founder of Jake’s Ice Cream. “I’m overjoyed by the chance to partner with such an amazing organization.” Mixed for the first time on July 28, “Pandamonium” is available at 660 Irwin Street in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward and at Jake’s Just Desserts at 2144 North Decatur Road.

The newest addition to Jake’s award-winning lineup of homemade offerings has received a very enthusiastic response thus far, according to Rothschild. “Like the Zoo, Jake’s is a beloved local institution known for giving back to the community,” said Marcus E. Margerum, Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Zoo Atlanta. “We are excited about this partnership and this is another way Atlantans can help keep giant pandas in our city.”

To date, Zoo Atlanta has collected over $66,000 in support of the Give So They Stay campaign, which continues through December 31, 2009. Giant panda friends are encouraged to stay tuned to givesotheystay.org for ongoing updates and announcements on new ways to help.  --Zoo and Aquarium Visitor

Thanks to pandapal, Lee Morris of Facebook for sending this our way!

Keeping up with Bai Yun and her 5th panda cub

The San Diego Zoo is helping us to keep up with how momma Bai Yun and her now 10-day-old panda cub are doing. 

You can read updates provided by the zoo's blog site along with the video collection they are building that is showing the cubs progress.  Best of all you can watch Bai and her cub live with their live webcam. 

Here is the latest video the zoo put together showing Bai leaving her den area to eat.  What makes this video so special is, it has sound and you can hear the young cub cry out to Bai.  Notice how quietly Bai Yun leaves and enters the den.  Also, all of the pieces of bamboo that you see in the den were shredded by Bai Yun in preparation for the birth of her cub.

Panda Poems by Pam

I am adding a wonderfully new segment to the sidebar.  As the title suggests, if you scroll down just about halfway down you will see the box that will now carry panda poems by Pam, a very special person who has a terrific talent for poetry. 

Thank You PamG of flickr for allowing me to share your very heartfelt poems with us here.

 

Sweet panda cub Lin Bing takes to the camera, a star is born!

While Lin Bing, the 77 day old cub at the Chiang Mai Zoo in Thailand, gets her regular check up and measurements, a photographer got some really nice close ups of her.  Lin is the first cub for Lin Hui, her mother and father Chuang Chuang.

 

OMG, cute overload!

 

Pandas International will spearhead bamboo replanting in Wolong

Scientist have begun to release their impact studies revealing how the 5/12/08 Wenchuan earthquake has affected the wild giant panda in their native habitat in the Sichuan mountains of China.  The most recent study, came back with dire news of the severely damaged bamboo forest.  You can catch the details of this study that we posted on July 26, 2009.

Without bamboo to eat the pandas will starve to death.  As you know, bamboo is the staple of their diet.  Local farmers have been notifying forestry officials of wild pandas coming up to their homes scavenging for food.  One panda has died  and there is grave concern for the others living in the mountains. 

I just received this email from Pandas International, they need our help!

Pandas International has been asked by the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP) to spearhead a drive to replant the bamboo destroyed by the earthquake. The planting and harvesting will be done by local farmers who will benefit economically from the project

Please help us help the panda.

• Send whatever you can...$5.00...$25.00...$50.00...just send it NOW.
• Consider partcipating in the Pennies 4 Pandas campaign.
• Get the word out to your friends and associates that this is a CRITICAL situation.

Each acre will cost about $4,500. WE MUST RAISE THE FUNDS NOW! If we don’t make a start in this planting season, the results will be catastrophic. We cannot stand by as a magnificent and beloved species, already teetering on the brink extinction, faces yet another challenge, a challenge we can and must meet.

To show our gratitude, we are offering our newest "green" Panda Tee FREE with all donations exceeding $25. This sand tee, made of recycled materials, has a bamboo band featuring two beautiful pandas screened across the front and is sure to become one of your favorites.

You will look great and feel better knowing that you are reducing energy usage, saving resources and replanting vital bamboo forests. 

Click on the Donate Now button and it will take you to the website that PI has set up for this campaign.  My check is on its way, I hope you can help as well.   Thanks.

 

Le Le & Ying Ying of Ocean Park, Hong Kong celebrate 4th birthday

Male panda Le Le and his female partner Ying Ying born only days apart, got a wonderful birthday surprise with a special Haagen Dazs ice cake.  Both Le and Ying were born at the Wolong Panda Base in 2005.  The seemed to hit it off as cub friends while growing up and were sent together to Ocean Park, Hong Kong in 2007. 

Ocean Park just recently opened their new addition to the park called Amazing Asian Animals and Le & Ying are now living in this state of the art facility.  You can read more about this unique park from our April 26, 2009 post.  Happy Birthday, we miss seeing you on the cams!

Despite being surrounded by dozens of photographers, the two pandas showed little hesitation before rushing to the yummy cake and polishing it off in just a few minutes, which added to the festive atmosphere of the party.

Allan Zeman is chairman of the Ocean Park and remembers when the pandas were first introduced to the resort.

"The pandas, when they first came here, it took some time for them to get accustomed to Hong Kong, to everything. And they were very curious. Then when we brought them over to their new house, the pandas were amazing. Because when they first came into the space, they rolled around, jumping all over the place. And of course we have snow, with a snow-making machine, which we never had before for them. So they like two of our children, playing around together. It's so much fun to watch it." - CRIENGLISH.COM

Getting a peek at Bai Yun's new panda cub

I have finally been able to come up with some video recording that shows San Diego Zoo Bai Yun's newborn cub.  Man, has it been tough as she keeps the cub so close to her chest.  Seeing that I could only watch the cams here and there it has taken me a few days to capture enough pieces to put together a video for you. 

Before long, though we will begin to see more and more of the cub like we did with Lin Hui in Thailand at the Chiang Mai Zoo.

Thanks to Dawn one of our regular readers here, they were able to capture this great screencap of the little one and sent it for us to see through email. Thanks Dawn.

Chiang Mai panda cub named 'Lin Bing'

Chiang Mai Zoo

  has announced that 60% of more than 22 million people who mailed in postcards have selected the name "Lin Bing', which means 'forest of ice'.   The zoo website is using the name 'Lin Ping'. 

Suvit Khunkitti, Minister of Natural Resources and Environment said the name is a mixture of the first half of her mother's name (Lin Hui - beautiful forest) with the name of the main river in Chiang Mai - the Ping River.

Suvite said, "It is a very appropriate name because it has a good meaning, both in Thai and in Chinese”.  The Nation 

Congratulations to the people of Thailand who have so enthusiastically embraced this little princess and to the zoo staff for their success in raising their first panda cub.

 

Zoo Atlanta panda cubs are growing, growing, growing.

Mei Lan

Here are some short, sweet videos that bob2cleo came back with from Zoo Atlanta. The first one is of Mei Lan, who will be three years old this September 6 2009. Although she is considered a sub-adult in scientific terms, going on three, I still think of her as a cub.  She is playing with what they call 'ping pearls' an enrichment item we have seen Tai Shan of the National Zoo play with also. Remember you can read more fun info about Mei Lan and her family with the 'keeper updates' that are posted most everyday by the keepers at the zoo, to read more on how they care for their pandas and the interesting research that takes place.

These next two short takes are with Xi Lan.  This little guy is sooo adorable.  Mommy, Lun Lun walks by to let him know she is keeping an eye on him, while he enjoys his time in one of the outdoor areas. His 1st birthday is coming up at the end of this month on August 30, 2009, are you going to be able to go and celebrate with him?

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Sometimes while your watching the live webcam you can catch the keepers as they go into the enclosures during the day to clean up the discarded bamboo, poo and bring in fresh bamboo and introduce an enrichment item.  The mothers or adults are enticed to move into an adjoining area with their favorite treats which can be fruit or leaf eater biscuits.  While the cubs are still small, they let the cub stay, most of the time they are usually sleeping, but if not, they will provide the cub with something to distract them rather then trying to move them around.  In this second video keeper Allison gives Xi a piece of banana.  I'm with you Xi, I love my bananas. 

Getting to know Fu Long and his heritage

We are so lucky to have panda friends that go out and take photos and videos and then share them with us so we can keep up with all of our wonderful pandas around the world. Today we have a new video of Fu Long and his parents, mom, Yang Yang and dad, Long Hui who live at Zoo Vienna in Austria and a big thanks to Lupoforme who captured this beautiful video of them. I love the music and graphics that Lupo used when putting this video together too!

In addition to the video by Lupoforme, here are three others that show Long Hui's mother, her name is #21 and Fu Long's cousin named Ya Ao. They are both living at the Shanghai Wild Animal Park, China.

Now you thought Fu was the only one with a white paw? Well, you are mistaken because thanks to YingYing816 who recorded all three of these videos, we get to visit with Tong Tong, he also lives at the Shanghai Wild Animal Park and surprise, surprise check out his white paw!

Catching up with Chiang Mai Zoo Pandas, Whew!

The Chiang Mai Zoo has got one of the most active publicity departments for any zoo that I have seen covering their giant pandas.  Of course, with the birth of their new female cub, it has kicked into high gear and its been alot of fun keeping up with her.

Chuang Chuang and his partner Lin Hui before the cub's birth. 

Thanks to panda pal, alohawzit who sent this video for us to enjoy about a group that did a music video about the giant pandas when they first arrived at the Chiang Mai Zoo. 

The Mee Panda video with English Translation

The cub now 71 days old,  weighs 4.470 grams (9.85 lbs.) and her length is 54 centimeters (1 ft. 9 inches) long.

 

Here they are introducing the cub to Chuang Chuang, her daddy and she looks very curious about him.

Chuang Chuang turned 9 years old on August 6, 2009, complete with a birthday cake for those who
came to visit him and a birthday cake made from bamboo and his favorite fruits and vegetables for him to enjoy.

The new snow dome, a indoor environment that will mimic cold temperatures for the pandas is scheduled to open on August 12, 2009.  They said they were going to let Chuang be the first one to experience it before Lin and her cub do at a later date. 

And don't forget the naming ceremony is also taking place that day.  I can't wait.  The list of names that the Thai people have been voting are listed on the poll just to right of this post on the sidebar.  Vote today to see if you picked the winning name.