The National Zoo is marking 50 years since the start of its giant panda conservation program. News4’s Eun Yang caught up with Brandie Smith, director of the zoo, who shared some updates and fun facts about some of D.C.’s favorite bears. NBC4’s Arun Raman contributed to this report.
The National Zoo in Washington, D.C., is marking 50 years since the start of its giant panda conservation program.
On April 16, 1972, giant pandas Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing arrived at the National Zoo as a gift from China. In the decades since, Washingtonians have delighted in watching the zoo’s panda family grow.
A Pandaversary Party is planned to mark the occasion on Saturday and Sunday. There will be live performances, plus the pandas will get special treats at 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. each day. Here’s more information.
News4’s Eun Yang caught up with Brandie Smith, director of the National Zoo, who shared some important updates and fun facts about some of D.C.’s favorite bears.
“They never get less cute, they never get old, the magic never wears off,” Smith said.
News4's Derrick Ward looks at the impact of the program and how it continues on 50 years later.
Humans are biologically programmed to like pandas, Smith says
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“It’s called the science of awe,” Smith said. “When you see a panda, whether it’s super cute or super big, you are actually releasing chemicals — like the chemicals of childbirth, the chemicals of love, the chemicals of togetherness.”
“Pandas actually make people better human beings," Smith said.
Xiao Qi Ji celebrated his first birthday Saturday with a specially tailored fruitsicle cake. Since his birth, the cub has captured hearts and had many first-time experiences, including sliding and tumbling around in snow and recognizing his name, which translates to “little miracle” in English.
Pandas have the bite force of a lion or tiger
As cute as pandas are, they’re still bears — with the claws and teeth to prove it.
“One of the reasons they’re so cute is because they have the big, round head,” Smith said. “What that roundness comes from is these incredibly strong jaw muscles.”
They need the jaw force to crush bamboo, Smith says.
The National Zoo's panda program is all about conservation
The National Zoo says fewer than 2,000 giant pandas live in the wild, so working to preserve and protect these bears is a key goal.
Five cubs were born to the first pair of pandas at the zoo, but none survived past a few days. But the past 50 years have taught zookeepers a lot about pandas and how to preserve their population numbers.
“We discovered a lot about reproduction; we discovered a lot about behavior,” Smith said. “We’ve also discovered a lot about the people who watch them — the millions of people who are fascinated with these animals — and how we are able to mobilize all this interest into a conservation force.”
The program flourished after Tian Tian and Mei Xiang arrived 20 years ago. Mei Xiang gave birth to four surviving cubs, Tai Shan, Bao Bao, Bei Bei and Xiao Ji Qi — the first panda in the U.S. born after his mother was artificially inseminated with frozen, instead of fresh, semen.
National Zoo/Getty Images
Bei Bei the giant panda turned four on Aug. 22, 2019, his last birthday celebration at the National Zoo before being returned to China under a breeding agreement.
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He's all grown up! Bei Bei, the National Zoo's 4-year-old giant panda, will leave D.C. to move to China on Nov. 19. He was born to mom Mei Xiang and dad Tian Tian at the zoo on Aug. 22, 2015. Here he was celebrating his 4th birthday.
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Bei Bei celebrated by chomping down on a specially made frozen cake filled with fruit.
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Bei Bei may have been growing out of babyhood by the time a snowstorm rolled over D.C. in February 2019, but he was captured on the Panda Cam having a blast. Watch the video here.
Roshan Patel, Smithsonian’s National Zoo
Bei Bei celebrated his third birthday with an ice cake made of frozen fruit juice, shredded carrot donuts, bamboo, and assorted produce.
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Bei Bei the giant panda rolls around a log sprinkled with pumpkin spice in October 2018.
National Zoo
Bei Bei had to have known something special was going on for his second birthday because he climbed right in to his "birthday boy" box.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
The National Zoo's Panda House briefly closed in fall of 2016 after Bei Bei underwent emergency surgery to remove a dense, masticated lemon-sized mass of bamboo stuck in his bowels. Fortunately, Bei Bei recovered nicely.
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Bei Bei, his big sister Bao Bao, and father Tian Tian all celebrate their birthdays in August.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
Delish! Bei Bei digs into his first birthday cake.
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In March 2016, Bei Bei proved yet again that the most ordinary things become extraordinarily cute when he does them — e.g., eating an apple.
Andy Kropa/Invision/AP
Keepers prepped Bei Bei for his public debut in January 2016. Bei Bei seemed right at home during an event shortly before his debut, posing and playing — in a panda cub-sized playpen! — as visitors watched with delight.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
By November 2015, Bei Bei weighed 12.5 pounds and had begun walking.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
Bei Bei was getting hefty by two months old! He weighed almost a full pound more than his older brother, Tai Shan, at the same age, the zoo said.
Smithsonian's National Zoo Panda Cam
"The classic nose to nose nuzzle!" the zoo tweeted in fall 2015. "Thx to Janet Crouse for sharing."
Smithsonian's National Zoo Panda Cam
On Sept. 29, 2015, the zoo shared a precious video of Bei Bei sneezing while snoozing with his mom. Go ahead, watch it 50 times. We'll wait.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
By the time he was six weeks old, the days of being tiny, hairless and helpless were gone! The cub now sported black-and-white fur and was wiggling around his den.
Joseph Kaczmarek
At about three weeks old, the cub was looking decidedly panda-like. Here is he at 1.9 pounds on Sept. 14, 2015.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
In mid-September 2015, the zoo said that the newborn was sleeping for much of the day, which is normal. Keepers said he sleeps with his paw over his eyes — just like dad Tian Tian and big sister Bao Bao.
Scott Olson/Getty Images
Keepers described Mei Xiang as a devoted mother. She gave birth to twins Aug. 22, 2015, but as many giant pandas do, struggled to care for them both. Keepers swapped the cubs back and forth, but the smaller cub died four days later. Bei Bei, the surviving cub, was healthy. Here are mom and baby in September 2015.
AP
Mei Xiang briefly left the cub Sept. 8, 2015, letting vets check the little cub's weight. He tipped the scales at 1.3 pounds and let keepers snap some color images.
Smithsonian's National Zoo
The cub and his twin were born Aug. 22, but the other cub — the smaller of the two — died four days after birth. Keepers have said that Mei Xiang is a devoted mother.
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Vets said that newborn Bei Bei appeared healthy and was developing normally more than a week after his birth. He was still mostly hairless in late August 2015, but he was beginning to get his black-and-white markings.
Now, some of D.C.’s favorite pandas are parents themselves. Tai Shan and Bao Bao are now back in China and have four offspring between them, carrying on the legacy of the National Zoo program.
The National Zoo’s current panda program is set to end next year
The pandas at the National Zoo are essentially on loan from China.
The current agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association is set to end in December 2023, but Smith says she’s confident there will be more pandas in D.C. in the future.
“We are absolutely committed to have pandas for another 50 years and beyond,” Smith said.
