Panda News from around the world
This is Longhui stripping bamboo. Pandas are lean mean bamboo processing machines. The keepers put the bamboo in different places in his enclosure so he had to move around to find it. He would plonk himself down by some bamboo, lay almost on his back, strip the leaves off making a mess on his chest then once he's finished he would simply stand up letting the mess fall to the ground then walk to the next pile of bamboo.
Happy new year and welcome back to the Photo a day.
This series of photos is of Longhui, taken in Vienna when I visited there in 2007. It was just after Yang Yang had given birth to Fulong. Fulong was huggeled up with his mum away from public sight. So all the photos are of Longhui.
The National Zoo of Malaysia is undertaking a new program to increase the number of visitors, part of this is a rename of the zoo and hoping to obtain a pair of pandas in exchange for a pair of their Orang-utans with a zoo in Shanghai. Currently they are talking to two zoos in Shanghai (hanghai Safari Park and Ningbo Youngor Zoo)
A wonderful website called Pandas live on, have a post and a short video of Atlanta's Little man on his first out outing to the public viewing area. So head over there and have a view.
The emergency fund raiser to buy a new bamboo cooler for the San Diego Pandas have reached their target. They are now able to buy the cooler and get it installed.
If you gave to this fund raiser I thank you and so do the pandas and staff at San Diego.
Since Tuan Tuan and Yang Yang arrived in Taiwan they have lost about 4kgs each due to the relocation with them eating just 15kg of bamboo between them while they usually eat 40kg a day each.
Keepers expect that the pandas will return to their normal eating patterns with a couple of weeks as they get use to the new bamboo, their keepers and their new environment.
When they moved they also took a two week supply of bamboo with them which was grown locally to them in Bifengxia. They have begun to eat bamboo grown from different areas of Taiwan to find which is their favourite.
The Leofoo Village Theme Park in Hsinchu, western Taiwan. has expressed an hoping that China will send them a pair of pandas. It's been reported that they have built an environment for them and staff have received training in China. So they are hoping that China will be gracious and send them a pair of pandas.
Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan have arrived safely at the airport in Taiwan and have gone through quarantine examinations at the airport. They are now in a truck being taken to their new home escorted by a police escort. Once they arrive they will be left to rest.
BBC News have a short video clip of Yuan Yuan and Tuan Tuan leaving Bifengxia
Thanks to James O for pointing this out.
It took years of political talking and the building of a new panda home in Taiwan, but finally Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan are on their way to their new home.
Their keepers gave them breakfast and moved them into their transporting crates then gave them some bamboo for the long journey. Local children performed a dance in celebration of the move. Then they were loaded in a truck and driven to Chengdu. Locals along the way waved and threw flowers to wish them well on their journey.
Found this wonderful pic whilst "stumbeling"
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