Note: Yi Lan and Xing Qiu are in quarantine and are not visible to the public. Bamboo Forest is currently closed
Adelaide Zoo is excited to announce two VIPs (very important pandas) have touched down in Adelaide.
In the early hours of this morning, Giant Pandas, Yi Lan (pronounced ee-lun) and Xing Qiu (pronounced shing chee-y-ull) (audio pronunciations can be found on our website), landed at Adelaide Airport before making the journey across the city to Adelaide Zoo.
Director of Adelaide Zoo, Dr Phil Ainsley, said their journey from Dujiangyan in China was very successful.
“Both Giant Pandas were comfortable and relaxed throughout the flight,” Dr Ainsley said.
“Yi Lan and Xing Qiu were accompanied by a Zoos SA veterinarian alongside a vet and panda keeper from our conservation partner the China Conservation and Research Centre of Giant Panda (CCRCGP).
“They regularly checked on the pandas throughout the flight and made sure they had plenty of bamboo snacks!”
After a short stopover in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia, the black-and-white duo landed into Adelaide in the early hours of this morning before making the journey across the city to Adelaide Zoo.
“We are very grateful for the support from the South Australian public and panda-fans across Australia and the world,” Dr Phil Ainsley said.
“This is such an exciting new chapter for Giant Pandas in Australia, and we look forward to learning all about Yi Lan and Xing Qiu’s personalities, likes and dislikes.
“During the time that Wang Wang and Fu Ni were with us at Adelaide Zoo, their species conservation status improved plus we saw an increase in Giant Panda numbers in the wild.
“So we can’t wait to see what is in store during this new Giant Panda era and for the next generation of South Australians to grow up with Yi Lan and Xing Qiu; hopefully sparking a love for their species and conservation into the future.”
Yi Lan and Xing Qiu are now settling in to their new home and getting to know the Adelaide Zoo keeping team. During this time, Bamboo Forest will be closed to the public while the pandas complete a mandatory quarantine period.
Zoos SA expects the public will be able to catch their first glimpse of the panda pair in mid-January, once this period is complete.
Male, Xing Qiu is four years old and is described as a very handsome panda with a docile but lively personality. Meaning “star Autumn”, Xing Qiu’s name describes his birth season and the starry sky that was twinkling above on the night he was born.
Three-year-old female is described as a playful and very beautiful panda. Her name means “idly blissful”.
Giant Pandas used to range throughout southern and eastern China, Myanmar and north Vietnam. Today, they live in six major mountains ranges in the Sichuan and Gansu Provinces with an estimated 1,864 Giant Pandas living across a 23,000 square kilometre range.
Giant Pandas reach breeding maturity between four and seven years of age and can breed into their 20s. Female pandas ovulate only once a year in spring.
Zoos SA looks forward to sharing more black-and-white news with the community during this next chapter of the zoo’s panda journey.
