A Pair Of Giant Pandas Return To China After 23 Years At The United States Zoo

The giant Panda Mei Xiang left the zoo. (Source: Lord's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute/Skip Brown)

JAKARTA - A pair of giant pandas to the National Zoo's favorite, Washington DC, arrived back in its home country, China, last month, after 23 years in the United States.

The pandas, Mei Xiang and Tian Tian arrived with their son, Xiao Qi Ji who was born in 2020. Mei Xiang and Tian Tian are loaned for research and breeding programs, quoted from CBS News November 30.

"Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and Xiao Qi Ji have landed in Chengdu, after the flight is safe. Our team will stay for a few days until the pandas are hard," wrote the zoo in the village on X.

Accumulating a 19-hour journey, with stops from refueling in the laskan, the pandas also carry 220 pounds of bamboo, 8 pounds of leaf-eating biscuits, 5 pounds of low-spati biscuits, 6 pounds of apples, 5 pounds of carrots, 6 pounds of sweet potatoes, 3 pounds of sugar cane, 1 pound of sweet potatoes, and 1 pound of cooked labus.

Mei Xiang and Tian Tian came to the zoo in 2000 as part of an agreement between the zoo and the China Wildlife Association and Conservation. The initial stage, the two pandas will stay for 10 years. Along with several extensions, the agreement will expire on December 7th.

Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and Xiao Qi Ji have landed in Chengdu! After a safe flight, they are on the way to their new home. Our team will stay for a few days as the pandas get settled. Thank you to @FedEx for transporting our Very Important Pandas in style! 🐼 🐼 🐼 🛬 #PandaStory pic.twitter.com/ATOzp1U8Ev

— National Zoo (@NationalZoo) November 9, 2023

Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and Xiao Qi Ji have landed in Chengdu! After a safe flight, they are on the way to their new home. Our team will stay for a few days as the pandas get settled. Thank you to @FedEx for transporting our Very Important Pandas in style! #PandaStory pic.twitter.com/ATOzp1U8Ev

While in Washington, Mei Xiang has given birth to seven children. Three died before adulthood and three others had been returned to China earlier. According to the agreement, the baby panda was returned at the age of 4.

It is known that the National Zoo first received pandas from China in 1972 in an effort to save the species by breeding them. This zoo has had a panda partner since then.

After the panda's return from the National Zoo, there are now only four giant pandas left in this program in the US. Interestingly, the four came from one family.

Yes, they are Lun Lun and Yang Yang, a pair of giant pandas at the Atlanta Zoo, as well as their descendants Ya Lun and Xi Lun. This panda family is expected to return to China in 2024.

In addition to the two zoos, San Diego also had pandas as part of the agreement, receiving the first two pandas in 1987. They should have lived only for 100 days. However, with several extensions of the agreement, Bai Yun and Shi Shi remained there until 2019. While in Uncle Sam's country, they had six babies.

Next up is the Memphis Zoo which has a 20-year loan agreement with China, ending in 2023 with a Ya Ya return in April, according to the Associated Press.

One of their male pandas, Le Le, helps other pandas around the world to carry babies through artificial insemination, the zoo said. Le Le died in February before returning to China.