Panda Tai Shan flown from U.S. zoo for Chinese breeding programme
Last updated 08/02/2010 14:08:05
Panda for Chinese breeding programme
A giant panda who became a star attraction at a zoo in the United States is to be resettled in his native China to help save his species.
Tai Shan began his journey from the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington yesterday. The four-and-a-half-year-old panda was boarded onto a fourteen hour flight for Chengdu.
He will now take on a new role in China as part of a panda breeding programme at Wolong's Bifengxia Panda Base in Ya'an, Sichuan.
Since his birth July 9, 2005, Tai Shan, whose name means "peaceful mountain", has become a celebrity in Washington and attracted millions of visitors worldwide to the National Zoo and to the Zoo's panda cams. The Zoo successfully negotiated two extensions with the China Wildlife Conservation Association, which allowed the Zoo to keep Tai Shan for two and a half years beyond the original two-year contract.
"Tai Shan's departure is bittersweet for his fans and the Zoo staff as he has been a true ambassador for the giant panda species in the United States over the past four and a half years," said Steven Monfort, the Zoo's acting director. "Because we had the opportunity to keep him longer, our Chinese partners have allowed us to learn more about giant pandas by charting his growth and development. But the time has come to say goodbye, and we know Tai's next phase will be to help save his species in China."
Zoo keeper and trainer Nicole Meese said: "I am honored to be able to accompany Tai Shan to his new home in China. Tai has touched so many people, not only those of us who are lucky enough to know and work with him personally but also those who watched him from a distance. We'll all be looking forward to the day when Tai Shan becomes a father, ensuring another generation of pandas for all to enjoy."
In the meantime, Zoo staff and volunteers will be monitoring its female panda—Tai Shan's mother, Mei Xiang—for indications that she is pregnant. In January, a team of Zoo scientists and collaborators performed two flawless artificial inseminations, but it will take 90 to 185 days to determine whether she is carrying a cub.
The contract for Mei Xiang and Tai Shan's father, Tian Tian, expires in December and the Zoo will negotiate for an extension. "We're confident giant pandas will always reside at the National Zoo," said Don Moore, the Zoo's associate director of animal care sciences. "
The zoo has worked for decades to conserve this endangered species and intends to continue its commitment to giant panda research in situ and at the Zoo. About 1,600 giant pandas exist in the wild and nearly 300 live in zoos and research facilities in China and around the world.
Read also >> Birth of panda cubs boosts China's population of the endangered giant panda species