Zhen Zhen was busy climbing trees just before her estrus period started. Photo credit: Meghan Martin
Zhen Zhen is now 5 1/2 years old, and our latest news from China indicates that she is doing very well! The third cub of Bai Yun and Gao, we’ve just learned that she was the first female to come into estrous this year in BiFengXia, and that she bred with two males, Lu Lu and Yuan Yuan. Zhen Zhen and her big sister, Su Lin, moved to China in September 2010 to be a part of the panda breeding program there.
While we can’t tell at this point whether or not these breeding encounters were successful (i.e., will result in a pregnancy), all reports suggest that her behavior was perfect. We are hopeful that she’ll have cubs later this summer, and we’ll keep you posted! Congratulations to Zhen Zhen!
Megan Owen is a conservation program manager for San Diego Zoo Global. Read her previous post, Speaking to Friends about Pandas.
Thanks for the update on Zhen Zhen. She was the first panda baby I watched grow up (on the cam). I think of her as still being a youngster, not a potential mother.
Wonderful news. Bai Yun and Gao Gao’s offspring are going to make us all proud again.
I worried about her ever breeding, since she always kept her lady parts covered by her tail flap…..that includes hanging by her toes in the tree tops. If her babies take after ZZ there is going to be some show, ZZ was fearless in the tree tops, and loved thrilling the crowd, if her babies take after her, and there is a cam on them lots our Chinese friends are in for what Mr. Wu has been doing to some of us, PLUS!!! Who would have thought that demure little lady ZZ would go in for plural marriage!!!…..love grammmie
Thank goodness pandas aren’t as neurotic about commitment, emotions, and rules as we humans often are, eh?
Well said!!,!!
Well, in the pandas it certainly would be neurotic. Our species is maybe an other story.
Agree to disagree, hahahahaha, thank goodness we can all be different — just like our friends the pandas!
Congratulations ZZ! Non-monogamous pandas for the win! Live it up, old friend, live it up.
Since Zhen Zhen bred with two different males, if she becomes pregnant and has a cub, will the Chinese facility do tests to see which male is the father of the cub?
Moderator’s note: Yes, but usually not right away, as that knowledge is not needed for cub management. However, it is important for studbook management and so a test would be done eventually.
DNA testing to determine who sired a cub is normally done before that cub entered the breeding program. Normally when they are about 4 years old.
Well if she were to have twins there needs to be a test right away. Otherwise we won’t know who should be paying cubbie support, possibly both of them!!! Love grammmie
LOLLOLLOL!!!!!!! Good One, Grammmie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
♥
puppygirl
This is exciting news, It is hard to imagine Zhen Zhen being the settling down type, Bai Yun has raised all her cubs well and Zhen Zhen will be a great mom too.
Perhaps hard to imagine, but can you anticipate the fun to come??? If the cubs think to climb higher, or outdistance momma they will be in for a creative surprise!!! Love grammmie
Oh how exciting! Our precious Zhennie could be with cub(s)! Thank you Megan for letting us know. And PLEASE keep us posted as you learn any details!
Lets make those grand girls for Bai and Gao, we are a bit heavy in the boys side, more girls, more girls, more girls,More Girls!!!! Love grammmie
How exciting, let’s keep our fingers cross for some more “grandkids”.
Such a big girl now! Hard to believe time has gone by so fast. Keeping fingers crossed!!!
How proud Dad Gao Gao and Bai Yun Mom will be to be grand-parents maybe??????
I remember Zhen Zhen when I visited the Zoo in San Diego…
I love the pandas!!!!!!!
Bai and Gao are already grandparents many times over. There are 9 living grandchildren out of 10 born. I’m waiting for one of Hua Mei’s offspring to officially reproduce so that she will be an official great grandmother!
So glad to get news of our precious ZZ! Is she back in BiFengXia from her “Eco Park?” I hope they give her a chance in the semi-wild area. She’s made for it!
We’ll hope for more news and some good pics, or even video!
Wonderful! I’ve missed her so much.
Also, I notice in the picture that ZZ is up above the tree guard. There never was a tree guard that Zhennie couldn’t defeat!
Moderator’s note: That was my first thought, too!
There are gaps in the tree guards in the photo, try enlarging before you click on it.
My thoughts about semi wild release. She would be a good candidate until the cub and her decided to go on a long climb and romp before a picnic lunch. ZZ sounds to me like the kind who can climb right out of trouble’s way, over fences, and, as said, over any tree guard out there. I thought of her while watching Mr. Wu tip-toeing among the twigs earlier, the kind of thing she would like to do. Give me a hint, was she faster making her seem more confident in the tree tops??? Well that and the FACT that she would have been on top of the tree guards, waving at the fans, and the shaken staff inside the building at the top??? I think Mr. Wu is channelling ZZ, his cousin(s) will be fine companions for Wu. He will only be a year older, but what fun he will have giving them information then, that he cannot quite get now??? There’ll be a hot Time in the ole treetops tonight. I guess the best we can do is wish success, happiness and healthy twin girls for ZZ…..girls, girls, girls, girls, girls, carry the chant until we know. Right now Wu may think girls are silly, that boy pandas who wooo girl pandas are silly, but what a difference a year will make for him! Oh I can hardly wait for ZZ’s twin girls to be born—-there I have talked myself into it—–everybody can relax, two girls coming right up!!! Love grammmie
This is great news! I am really happy that Zhen Zhen mated naturally! The fact that her partners were experienced breeders probably helped but even so, it is great news! I hope that all will go well and that Zhen Zhen will deliver healthy cub(s) and that she will be a great mom!
I have always considered Zhen Zhen to be “my” panda because she was the first one I followed from the time she was born until she left for China (oh the tears that flowed that day). Two of my dearest friends went to the SDZ when they were in San Diego and they filmed and photographed ZZ for me. I use one of the pictures they took of her as my profile picture on Facebook. I’m so happy that she’s doing well and I can’t wait to hear if she is pregnant. Thanks, SDZ, for all the wonderful things you do for this incredible species.
Thank you so much for the news about ZZ. I often wonder what my favourite little panda is up to.
I kinda feel like a proud auntie or something. Now, how odd is that.
I have a question off the subject, if I might: you know how kittens/cats knead not only to feed but for comfort. My cats knead on me often. Do panda cubbies, especially when they are older and not nursing much, knead just for closeness/comfort? Did I explain that OK? I was just wondering if they do, and if Momma would tolerate it. Thank you…….
We have never observed anything like what cats do, but there is cub paw movement on the mother’s chest while feeding sometimes…
So proud of her! Is it known if Mei Sheng is the father of any cubs yet?
so glad to get any news of our SDZ pandas. Wonder how Su Lin and her boy is doing? Do you have any news about Su Lin? Miss seeing and hearing about them. She’ll be a great Mom, just like her mom
Su Lin’s son, Yun Hui is in the kindergarden with two female cubs, Yun Duo and Su Shan. They used to be on one of the pandacams from Explore.org but earlier this month they were moved to another location within Bifengxia and were replaced by cubs born in 2012.
Just the thought of little ZZ’s in the world makes me smile
Thank you Megan for the wonderful news!! Our little girl has truly grown up.
Here are the videos from Thursday
2:35pm on the Garden Room platform, and Xiao Liwu has a 14 minute nursing session. Here’s the precious highlights:
2013-02-14 A Mother’s Love: Xiao Liwu Nurses
http://youtu.be/ODGHXOG_sLo
…and this was posted earlier on the last blog … Xiao Liwu started the day by climbing up a new trunk in the tree, and found a perfect place to nap after he explored all the new branches and leaves
2013-02-14 Xiao Liwu: Making Hearts Flutter
http://youtu.be/GRBo3sorm5c
OMG, he’s going to give us all a heart attack
Thanks for sharing the videos. I always look forward to seeing them. The one with Mr. Wu in the tree, had me scared for a bit. There was no way that little branch was going to support his, oh so lovely “tush.”
Great videos–and I agree, DoxieMom–the thought of more little ZZ’s makes me smile.
Hi, Doxie Mom:
It certainly was a good feeding video from last evening…then, a few minutes later, Mom picked baby up in her two hands and deliberately dropped him over the side of the platform. Breaks my heart to watch. I DO wish the Zoo would enclose that platform with a chain-link fence about 4-5 ft high to eliminate that particular ‘teaching’ activity for little Wu. He took moments to recover before he could climb back up to Bai again. The cumulative effect of all these falls have to be building up to an injury. (sigh).
I wonder if moms in the wild drop and push their young out of the trees or hillsides, etc. to teach them about panda life.?
Even though Bai the first panda born in captivity. she is one small step from being a WILD PANDA. Therefore, she has wild panda instincts. Her job is to raise her cub. That means teaching the cub the rules of survival in the wild. Yes, it means listening to mom, falls, being dropped, being ignored when Mom is eating, Mom taking cubs food. All have said Wu is NOT HURT when he falls or is dropped. Mom only has 18 months to train her cub to survive and she is all alone with no help
. So please get over it.
Go to youtube and check out some other panda videos. You’ll see all panda moms raise the cubs the same way. In fact, LunLun (ZA) is called monster mom because of her rough ways.
Auntie Lunnie was nicknamed Mommy Monster by Xi Lan but she is not like that with Po. I always told AJ that he would try the patience of a saint. Hee Hee.
Panda love,
Yunz
Hi, Maureen:
Nope. CAN’T “get over it.” (Guess I’d make a terrible panda mom).
Actually I just watched a bunch of Lun Lun videos, and yes she pushes Xi around but I never saw her deliberately pick up Xi and drop him from high places.
Thanks Megan for the update on Zhen Zhen. Here’s hoping for a grandpanda. Zhen will make a great mommie. Bai has raised all her cubs well.
What good news about “my” panda. I was one of those who picked the name Zhen Zhen and watched her grow up at the Zoo. I hope she does well and becomes a mom like Bai Yun.
If you go to the Edinburgh zoo Facebook page you’ll se one of the loveliest bits of film ever of our female, Tian Tian, playing with a red ball, and her keepers in fits of giggles at her amazing reaction to her new toy, Gorgeous!
Is it possible for you to post a link to it? I tried to find it on the site, but could not.
I saw a video yesterday of Lady McBear having a wonderful time with hers, but Lord McBear was not so enamored. Something about not including food, so not worth his energy. Perhaps he is saving up for mating time. Cousin Zhen Zhen has a head start of the season at BiFengXia. We are going to keep up the chant of girls, girls, girls, girls, ect., until she gives us two very healthy girls.
Laugh if you like, but that is how I arranged for Mr. Wu to complete Bai Yun’s perfect six pack of 3 boys, 3 girls….love grammmie
The you tube video is called Tian Tian Having a Ball and shows really clearly how pandas fall and roll – might reassure those who worry about Mr Wu to see an adult panda do this.
Fascinating – and funny. If you ever wanted to see a girly Panda doing her morning aerobics routine….!
Here’s the direct link to Tian Tian and her red ball video on youTube. Very cute. Hold old is she?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LK0_I93udg
Tian tian is about eight years old, I think. She was quite aloof when she first arrived and Yang Guang was the more playful, but she’s really come into her own recently.
Cara – I am off to see the Edinburgh Zoo pandas this week. Just getting ready.
As a Scot I was thrilled to see Tian Tian play with the red ball, just a joy to watch this endearing panda, have put a comment on the Facebook page at Edinburgh Zoo informing Tian Tian that our little Wu Wu loves to play with a ball as well but climbing trees is more his thing at the moment!
Thank You for the hint, the video was really funny.
The link is by the way
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LK0_I93udg
I’ve watched lots of panda cubs, but Zhennie was one of those special ones who grabbed my heart & won’t let go. I hope any cubs she may have show the same spirit she has! It’s so good to see that pic of her up a tree as usual–she used to scare me by standing on one branch, holding on to a branch overhead, & bouncing, bouncing, bouncing! Many times, I had to look away! Little Gift seems to me to be a lot like Precious. He wasn’t in such a hurry to leave the den (has ANY cub been such a determined sleeper?) but once outside, he lost no time in exploring everything! Mr. Wu, I hope you don’t bounce like ZZ–I’m older now, & I’m not sure my heart could survive going through that again!
So nice to hear about Zhen Zhen’s breeding — sure hope it is successful. She was probably my favorite pandas because she was so much fun to watch! I called her Zhennie the Great because of her amazing acrobatic skills… I cried when she left — now I can cry as she becomes a mama…
I am happy for her she is a big girl having her frist cubs it would be fun,They would be grandparents
As I read these comments, I realize what a rookie panda fan I am, even though I’ve been watching Xiao Liwu daily for months now! I’m impressed to read that there are people who’ve been doing so for years!
Yes, it’s very interesting indeed to hear some “pandalore” from other fans. Thank you all for sharing!
Julie, somebody was remiss in not welcoming you to the land of Panda Nuts! How odd. We may be Nuts, but that does not preclude keeping good manners. I am sorry you somehow got skipped.
Julie-welcome to the land of Panda Nuts. This space is used for occasional serious discussion of Pandas, and the rest is filled with stories, from the panda point of view, links to other photos, videos and such, fun, laughter, and memories of pandas past. Our moderators help with some of our questions, or we wait for an answer from the Panda Team. If a reader answers first, and correctly, they get that question off. Be sure to check back as much as 3 blogs because an answer may not come before a new blog is posted and that comment section started. The answer is usually with the question, if the person who asked has not seen the answer they think they were skipped. I love reading back through the old blogs, learning more about the pandas before Yn Zi, who was my first, and he is number 5 of 6. Even the older comment sections have much to tell you, because they are all about pandas, even when not serious. P Wong has been interviewing the pandas since almost all the way back , the archives go back to 2003, and after Yun Zi was born Lucilla gave us a story called The Bamboo Diamond……..and has been with us ever since giving us a good time along with education.
I hope you are with us for a long time, and enjoy yourself too…love grammmie
Thanks, Grammie. I appreciate your comments. I’ve been a viewer more than a commenter, so I would have been easy to miss. But I have been thoroughly entertained and well educated by all of you who post frequently, and most certainly by the pandas themselves.
Thanks for the update. I hope we will have a new addition to the family. Is that common to be mated with 2 different male panda?
Megan, thanks for the info on Zhennie. She is such a favorite and in China,
she had a special tour.(so our girls are such favorites everywhere-miles away.) Her dear face is inscribed now in many places. How we do appreciate all the news of our bears. They are so loved.
Virginia, thank you so much for the information about China. I had no idea they had a tour and were so popular. Our girls are beauties like their momma, with dad’s sense of fun, but who knew foreign Pandas could be so popular. Love grammmie
Zee is certainly Bai Yun’s daughter! She does her parents and SDZ proud!
What a wonderful Valentine’s gift! Zhen has always been my special panda and I was thrilled to read about her! She will be a very fun mom! Thank you for passing along the news and please keep the updates coming!
congrats for Zhen Zhen. hopefully she will become pregnant.
by coincidence, one of the panda cams in Bifengxia put a panda named Lu Lu on one cam (explore (dot) org/#!/live-cams/player/china-panda-cam-4) but I cannot tell whether it is Zhen Zhen’s boyfriend or not.
I did not know Zhen Zhen when she was at San Diego but downloaded the SDZoo’s ipad app about her and watched all her videos (especially enjoying her snow day).
I miss Zhen Zhen so much. I cried when both her and her sister, Su Lin left us. It’s hard enough losing 1 panda, but taking both of them at the same time, was even harder. I am happy she is doing so well, and hopefully her mating is a success. Hugs and kisses to you Zhen Zhen.
I miss them both too. I went to see them on the same day they they were being shipped to China. I missed them and was so sad I cried, my husband thought I was crazy.
Congrats to our little Zhen Zhen!! Let’s hope for cubbies!
Hey, you all! I found out about Zhen Zhen earlier today thru my Facebook page from Pandas International! Great for her!! And she had TWO boyfriends to have fun with!!! Super girl!! I am also hoping and praying that ZZ will have a cub later on this year as well! I’m just wondering, Moderator–how many grandcubs does Bai and Gao have now?
Been checking the pandacam the last couple of days, and I have been catching little Xiao napping on a tree trunk, Gao being the eating machine that he usually is, Bai walking around/eating/napping, cute stuff!
Gonna go to bed and check the pandacam later on! Oh BTW, I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THE KOALA CAM!! Got on it a few times already, and there was a very sleepy koala sitting in the tree. Cute!! Love it! How long have you had this koala cam up? I’m glad that you have a different animal cam for us to check on, and I am also keeping up with the condor cam since Satash and Sisquoc laid their egg recently! Waiting for their egg to hatch soon!
Now, to bed I go!!
Chari Mercier
St. Pete, FL
Moderator’s note: Hua Mei has had nine cubs and Su Lin has had one.
Am I remembering wrong or did I not read in yesterday’s comments that one of Hua Mei’s cubbies died? I asked about it in comments, I need to go back and find the answer with the question. Even I forget what I preach about checking back in the comment sections. We have had a quick set of blogs this week, I am a bit slow getting back…..love grammmie
Moderator’s note: Yes, one of Hua Mei’s cubs died.
Excellent news about Zhen Zhen. I never saw her live and only watched her for a short time on Panda Cam but know she was a wild girl. Hope all goes well for her future cub(s). Thank you Megan.
On anothern note, I noticed at the end of the last blog, it was mentioned that work has started in Yun Zi’s enclosure on his tree. Sorry he is off- exhibit, but will look forward to seeing the newly refurbished enclosure when it is ready.
Does anyone out there have some video links to share with our newer watchers???
Perhaps the newer readers can go back in the archives to about when Z Z was born and scan for green or any color besides black towards now, showing videos of her. She was born in August 2007, and Su Lin in 2005.
You might want to check for P Wong interviews (once you find a couple you can scan faster because you know how stories and interviews look), have a fun time and enjoy your reading…..love grammmie
That’s great news. Do you have any details of where the grandchildren that are related to Bai Yun and Gao Gao are now. Are there any webcams where we can watch them?
Thanks again Doxiemom for the two videos from yesterday. Talk about hearts fluttering,I think mine stopped watching our little guy climb up so high. Sure glad he didn’t fall. That was just too high for him to be climbing. The video of Wu nursing,was awsome. It sure showed again what great mom Bai is. That was a great Valentine’s Day picture. Made me smile and cry at the same time. Thanks again. Have a great day Doxiemom and thanks to SDZ for sharing Bai and Wu and the pandas with the world.
That good news.She be a good Mom
I know this is off panda bear topic, but for those of you who have been watching the koala cam … it is now 11:56 am (eastern time) and the baby koala is in full view …he/she is adorable!
thanks for the alert. I missed it but caught up with the elephants for a few moments. I know other people have commented that they’ve sighted the joey so at least I know the truth, err, the joey is out there.
the joey is out now. it is hanging over the lower section of the branch, beneath mom. only one ear, head, and one arm are showing. just beforehand, this little paw kept waving and I was thinking, hmm, this koala has an errant foot but it was the joey’s.
I know, so cute, fur is a different color from Mom.
We need a Joey alert blog! Hint, Hint!
A koala blog would be great … I was also thinking it would be nice if a “camera” button could be added to the koala cam (like the one on the panda cam) so that those of us watching could take snapshots of the koalas
Moderator’s note: Look for a koala blog posted later today! Just check the list of featured posts on the right side of every blog to see when it’s posted.
I hadn’t realized mama’s pouch opens on the bottom…I had been looking for Joey up by her head but he is down by her feet when he is out! Wow!
Moderator’s note: Our first blog about the koalas you see on Koala Cam is now posted: Koala Family on Koala Cam.
Our Zoomie is all grown up! It is as if it was just yesterday when I saw her with her Momma, so close like I could almost touch her fur, almost like looking at me while eating a piece of leaf… She probably was just about 8-10 months old then but looked very grand already, and what a magnificent sight to see her and her Mama Bai. Sure time flies.. I know she will be a good Momma as Bai taught her children very well! I will always remember how playful she was with all her antics and she is probably still now even in her grown up years.
My best wishes to sweet Zhen Zhen. It will be wonderful
to see her with a little cub. I know Zhen will be an
excellent mom.
Yes Zhen will be a great mom, JUST LIKE BAI YUN!
Does anyone know what the pandas are licking at the National Zoo, it looks like a whiteish brick, they seem to really enjoy it!
I’m sure our pandas would love it too.
It’s a fruitsicle. They have two types — ones a ring and the other is a stick. Some kind of frozen liquid embedded with fruit.
Tian Tian chomps through it. While Mei Xiang slowly licks until it’s becomes hard to hold. Then she just gobbles it up. By the time both are done with it, there’s no trace that it ever existed.
And if you are going to China take a case of them with you…Tai Shan was talked about as if he were an addict!……love grammmie
Thank you for the blog on Zhennie. I miss her so much, she was the first panda ‘girl’ I watched on cam.
I am also happy she is back at BFX, it’s so beautiful and lush there – I’m sure she’s very happy to be home again!
I would like to know updates about Mei Sheng. Thks.
Hey Jane and Grammmie~~
Wasn’t sure where to post this so ya’ll would see it.
I posted back to both of you about the article written in Chinese. It’s on the
“Pandas: The Big Boys”. My posts to ya’ll are at Feb. 15 at 4:49 PM.
Grammmie, Many THANKS for your idea about Google translating
hehe!! Had to leave some “silly” for you about ZZ dating !
Jane, Super Many THANKS to you for your time and trouble writing all that ♥
You did a GREAT job ♥ and I Greatly Appreciate it
♥♥♥
puppygirl
Puppy–I guess right here is just fine for me. I read back in case I miss it, but as long a the subject is put in I am okay. By the time you are 66, soon 67 you may have a few memory problems too. On top of that I have an abscess in a spit glad that just raised it’s ugly head again for the first time in 6 months. That also effects my memory. So if you answer any questions that aren’t quite current, reminders of the subject will always be helpful. Love grammmie
I thought I might have a year and a half old photo of Lu Lu, but didn’t find it in a quick search. When I have more time I will try to take the time to scan the China photos. So as not to be too disappointed here is a darling photo of Bai and Mr. Wu. For Valentines Day…..love grammmie
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ritapetita/8471831375/in/photostream
Good to hear about ZZ. Was so sad when her & her sister left.
. Would love to see her as a Momma. If she’s anything like her Momma, she’ll be fantastic.
ZZ comes from great stock. She should be an excellent mom. ZZ you go girl!!
If she is pregnant and has a successful birth, how will they know who the father of her cub(s) is? Or, is that not pertinent in their breeding program?
Moderator’s note: It is very pertinent, and DNA tests will be done before the cub(s) are of breeding age.
Thank you so much for keeping posted on the babies. I remember Hua Mei and how adorable she was as a little panda. She was Bai Yun’s first baby with Shi Shi. I’ve heard she’s a mom several times over. Please keep us posted on all of them when you catch any news. They’ll always be in our hearts.
I’m new to watching the Panda’s here this year. I’m in love with them and the baby cub is so sweet. After reading here I am wondering if they are all sent back to China? Thanks.
Moderator’s note: Not necessarily. We’ll just have to wait to see what our new loan agreement will be with China later this year.
I am so excited. ZZ is such a beautiful fun girl!
So happy to hear about our Zhennie Girl. She’ll be the best momma. She’s so young and full of energy. Rememger how long she could entertain herself zoomin’ around her enclosure? She could climb beyond the limits in all of the tree’s. There’s no way a baby would get away from her. I wish she were here so we could experience this w/her (if, she is in fact PG). I’m guessing it would be like watching Lun Lun & Po. Only how sad will it be to have her cub removed when it’s so young? Don’t they do that much earlier in China? They certainly don’t get to nurse as long as ours do. Did Yun Zi wean earlier than Po? Or is Po just super sized for his age so it seems like he’s never going to?
Someone please correct me if I’m wrong, but I believe that some time ago China stopped that policy of taking the cubs away at 6 months. Moms now get to raise their cubbies for the full 18 months, I believe.
The cubs that are on the toddler cam at explore.org seem to be about 6 months old, as they look to be about he same size as Xiao Liwu. Based on that, it appears the cubs are taken from Mom by then. I have no solid information other than observation so hoefully someone ‘in the know’ will chime in.
Panda Team responds: Those cubs are removed from their mother at about 6 months of age, far earlier than would occur in nature. To counter balance the loss of the social relationship with their mother, cubs are given the opportunity to peer-foster, living in groups.
Thanks, Megan for this update! I always look forward to your news from China and panda information in general! Any idea if Hua Mei has bred this year?