Two pandas from China are finally on their way to California’s San Diego Zoo.
Visitors will be able to visit with Yun Chaun and Xin Bao in several weeks, after the pandas acclimate to their new environment, the zoo said in a news release on Wednesday. An opening date to view the panda exhibit will be revealed later this year.
Dignitaries and US officials held a farewell ceremony for the bears near the Bifengxia Giant Panda Base in China’s southwestern Sichuan province on Wednesday, which was attended by San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance President and CEO Paul Baribault and San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria.
“This farewell celebrates their journey and underscores a collaboration between the United States and China on vital conservation efforts,” Baribault said in a statement. “Our long-standing partnership with China Wildlife Conservation Association has been instrumental in advancing giant panda conservation, and we look forward to continuing our work together to ensure the survival and thriving of this iconic species.”
Officials kept the event under wraps to avoid drawing a large crowd, NBC News reported. Following the ceremony, the pandas were transported to the airport in Chengdu and put on a truck.
The panda pair — which are on loan for 10 years — are the first to travel to the US in 21 years.
“We are incredibly excited to welcome Yun Chuan and Xin Bao to the San Diego Zoo,” Baribault said.
The collaboration between the San Diego Zoo and China’s Wildlife Conservation Association has helped downgrade the bears’ status from endangered to vulnerable, zoo officials noted earlier this year.
Yun Chuan’s mother was born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007. A panda caretaker described the four-year-old male bear as “pretty outgoing and lively.”
“He likes interacting with the caretakers and often runs over when he hears their footsteps,” the caretaker added.
Xin Bao, the female panda accompanying Yun Chuan, is three and was described as “a bit more introverted, but she’s very smart and alert.”
The caretaker added: “She pays close attention to sounds like birds chirping and insects buzzing.”
The four panda bears at Zoo Atlanta are currently the only ones in the US. Three bears from the National Zoo in Washington, DC left last year.
