(ANN/THE CHINA DAILY) – Two giant pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, have set off for the United States, enhancing China-US collaboration in giant panda conservation.
Departing from the Ya’an Bifengxia Base in Sichuan province, the pandas will fly from Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport to their new home at the San Diego Zoo in California.
Accompanied by five experienced caretakers and veterinary experts from both China and the US, the pandas’ journey is meticulously planned to ensure their well-being.
Provisions include fresh bamboo, bamboo shoots, fruits, vegetables, specially made bread, and drinking water.
Upon arrival, the pandas will undergo a quarantine period, during which Chinese experts will remain at the zoo for about three months to assist in their acclimation to the new environment.
Enthusiasts in both countries will have access to updates on Yun Chuan and Xin Bao’s daily lives and adjustment process.
This move marks the continuation of a longstanding conservation partnership. Since the 1990s, China has worked with 26 institutions in 20 countries, including the US, Spain, Japan, and France, to protect the species.
The San Diego Zoo was among the first US institutions to join this cooperative research effort.
Over more than 20 years, the two sides have cooperated and solved a series of technical challenges in key areas such as captive panda breeding, habitat protection and panda supplemental nutrition, according to the Sichuan centre.
On the same day when Yun Chuan and Xin Bao set out for the US, the China Wildlife Conservation Association and the Schoenbrunn Zoo in Vienna, Austria, signed an agreement on a new round of international cooperation on giant panda conservation.
It means another pair of panda bears will move to the European country, initiating a 10-year international cooperation on giant panda conservation.
Giant pandas Yuan Yuan and Yang Yang, who are currently in Austria, will return to China once the previous cooperation agreement expires this year.
Austria will renovate the Vienna zoo’s panda enclosure and make other necessary arrangements to welcome the new pair to a more comfortable and safer living environment.
To ensure the well-being of the giant pandas, Chinese experts visited Austria at the start of this year and provided technical guidance on venue preparations, specifying standards for panda enclosure facilities, feeding management, food supply, healthcare and other requirements.
The China Wildlife Conservation Association and the Schoenbrunn Zoo, which is renowned as one of the most beautiful zoos in Europe, started their first phase of cooperation in 2003, with the arrival of giant pandas Yang Yang and Long Hui at the zoo. The pair set a European record by mating naturally and breeding four times to become the parents of five cubs.
Over the past two decades, both sides have achieved fruitful results in giant panda conservation, breeding, scientific research, technical exchanges, personnel training and public education, according to the Sichuan centre.
