SAN DIEGO (KGTV) -- A farewell ceremony was held in China Wednesday for two giant pandas that will soon be heading to their new home at the San Diego Zoo.
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria and officials with the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance were among those in attendance at the special event in the Sichuan Province.
The pandas – 5-year-old male Yun Chuan and 4-year-old female Xin Bao – will reside at the San Diego Zoo under a 10-year research and conservation agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association. They will be the first pandas to enter the U.S. in 21 years.
Yun Chuan is the son of Zhen Zhen, who was born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007. Zhen Zhen’s parents were Bai Yun and Gao Gao.
Zoo officials stated the pandas “will travel to the San Diego Zoo soon after the farewell ceremony. After the pandas have safely arrived in San Diego, they will not be viewable to the public for several weeks while they acclimate to their new home. As soon as wildlife health and care teams confirm Yun Chuan and Xin Bao are ready to meet the public, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance will share a debut date and specific information about how to see the beloved pandas.”
San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance President/CEO Paul Baribault said in a news release, “We are incredibly excited to welcome Yun Chuan and Xin Bao to the San Diego Zoo. This farewell celebrates their journey and underscores a collaboration between the United States and China on vital conservation efforts. 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.”
China recalled almost all of its pandas who were on loan to zoos in the United States around five years ago after relations between the two countries soured. Cooperation between China and the United States has led to the possibility of pandas returning to zoos, including the San Diego Zoo.
"The return to San Diego of giant pandas is a testament to the nearly 30-year partnership the San Diego Zoo and Wildlife Alliance forged with China to successfully protect these magnificent creatures," Gloria said in February, when a deal between China and the United States first made news. "I'm pleased this positive relationship and our advocacy have resulted in this major announcement. San Diegans look forward to welcoming the pandas back to America's Finest City."
There is typically a $1 million per year fee paid by the zoos for two pandas and the money is used for China's conservation efforts, according to a 2022 report by America's Congressional Research Service.
China first gifted the U.S. with pandas in 1972, when two were sent to the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. Part of the goal in loaning pandas to zoos in the United States was to help breed cubs and boost the population.
Conservation efforts have saved the giant pandas from extinction by increasing the population from fewer than 1,000 to more than 1,800 in the wild and captivity, causing the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List to downgrade the giant panda from Endangered to Vulnerable in 2021.
While in China, Gloria will also attend meetings in Beijing with senior officials at the National Forestry and Grassland Administration to "further enhance conservation opportunities and participation of the two peoples," a statement from the mayor's office reads.
City News Service contributed to this report
