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About Author: Anastasia Horning

Posts by Anastasia Horning

453

A Mister for Every Panda

By
Anastasia Horning
– May 14, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas
Xiao Liwu gets comfy in the tree.

How can he rest like that?

As we move into warmer days, I know a few people watching Panda Cam have commented about seeing some “smoke” in the exhibit. Do not be alarmed! What you see are water misters we have for each panda exhibit. In the wild, these bears do deal with extreme cold in the winter and in the summer experience extreme humidity, but here in San Diego they have been a little spoiled with the nice weather that they so often enjoy.

As we head into summer, keepers have some tools to ensure that our animals are comfortable and can relax to get a break from the heat. The number one enrichment item for the summer is ice. On those hot days, keepers like to go raid the food stands for their ice to give “their” animals something cool to flop down on or sit in. We also make popsicles for them; pandas get applesauce, honey, and chunks of fruit in water that is frozen overnight. For a lot of the Zoo’s carnivores, we make “bloodsicles,” using the juice from the meat they are given, as a cool treat.

Another tool at our disposal is the mister, and it can do multiple things for the exhibit and animal. A mister can keep the dust down in the enclosure and make it easier for the keepers to clean. It also creates a cool place for the animal to sleep in so they can stay out on exhibit for our guests to see. If the area gets too warm, the pandas do have air-conditioned bedrooms as well. I always like to remind everyone that our animals’ well being does come first.

Everyone stay cool out there!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

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601

Pandas Move a Bit

By
Anastasia Horning
– May 6, 2013Posted in: Animals and Plants, Pandas
Mr. Wu and Mom wrestle in the north exhibit's hammock

Mr. Wu and Mom wrestle in the north exhibit’s hammock

We are pleased to announce that the front viewing area of the panda exhibit in the San Diego Zoo’s Panda Trek is being remodeled so that our guests will have multiple opportunities to view the pandas. In preparation for the construction, we did some panda shuffling. Bai Yun and little Wu are currently in the north exhibit, which is open to Zoo guests. As you may recall, this is the exhibit where Xiao Liwu made his public debut back in January! Pandas Yun Zi and Gao Gao are in off-exhibit areas not accessed by Panda Cam, but rest assured they are getting plenty of attention from their keepers. We are not sure how long the construction will take: perhaps a week or so.

Thank you so much for your understanding, and please come visit us during the construction to say “Hi” to the cub!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

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446

Panda Cub: Rolling and Tumbling

By
Anastasia Horning
– May 2, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized
The little cutie seems to imitate his father's relaxed eating style.

The little cutie seems to imitate his father’s relaxed eating style.

As the San Diego Zoo’s panda cub, Xiao Liwu, gets more and more confident in his enclosure, we are beginning to see some fun new behaviors from him and his mother, Bai Yun. So far, at least once a day the cub is coming down out of the tree to get some exercise with his mom and possibly nurse. The time frame and duration of his stay out of the tree has varied from day to day. Xiao Liwu enjoys coming down and jumping on his mom’s back and wrestling with her, and Bai Yun has been super patient and puts up with quite a bit of biting from her little one.

Bai Yun has been extremely relaxed these days and is maintaining a stable weight of 230 pounds (104 kilograms). She is not too rough with her cub and is showing off those mommy moves that we all love so much. As Xiao Liwu is teething and trying out the bamboo, Bai Yun has been surprisingly calm about him getting into her food and trying new pieces. When he initiates a wrestling match, she has been very obliging.

Two days ago, the cub gave our guests a heart-stopping moment—he fell out of the tree from about 20 feet (6 meters). As keeper Jen and I were talking, the cub was in the tree playing on a new branch and trying out some new moves. We looked up for a second, and Xiao Liwu rolled out of the tree! Wu never made a sound—just got right back up and continued playing. He’s moving just fine, and Bai Yun was not alarmed at all by the little oops he made from the tree.

Now I know some of you will be wondering if we need to check him or why we didn’t grab him, and the answer is simple: he’s tough! We did not see any limping or stress behavior from either Mom or cub. Panda cubs are designed to make those climbing mistakes at this young, bouncy age. That layer of baby fat helps, too!

So keep on watching and come see us soon. Just a word to the wise: there is NO schedule for when the cub comes down to play, so please remember to give him some time.

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

UPDATE: The main panda viewing area is currently closed as we make modifications to it. Bai Yun and Xiao Liwu have been moved back to the north exhibit, where they can be viewed by guests. Pandas Gao Gao and Yun Zi are off exhibit during this time.

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1009

Yun Zi Masters New Tree

By
Anastasia Horning
– April 12, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Animals site sub feature, Bears, Pandas
Yun Zi's new "tree"

Yun Zi’s new “tree”

NOTE: Our phone company appears to be experiencing technical challenges. Phone service, live cams, and some website functions have been affected. Sorry for the inconvenience. Please check back later.

This new artificial tree for Yun Zi has been a lot of fun! Zoo guests can watch our three-and-a-half-year-old panda climb all over it, and keepers can provide enrichment items in and on it in new ways. I love to watch our keepers hide food for  Yun Zi in the tree’s little nooks and crannies and throw the bamboo up high where he has to work to get it. Although he did recently pay a little too much attention to the small elm tree in his enclosure, he has been a bit better about not destroying the poor “real” tree.

As we panda narrators watch him figure out how to maneuver his way to the top of the tree, keepers have the fun job of trying to make it more difficult for him. I always tell people that bears are really never given enough credit for being problem solvers (or starters, in Yun Zi’s case!). Yun Zi, like his siblings before him, is very good at figuring out different ways of remodeling the enclosures.

A Zoo guest recently asked me why the bears don’t have more grass and plants in the exhibits. Laughingly, I replied that we try all the time to add vegetation to the exhibits, but if the bears don’t like it or want to change it, there really isn’t a whole lot we can do. I still remember the morning we put grass in with Bai Yun and Yun Zi when he was a small cub. The Horticulture Department and many other bear keepers came down to help us get everything ready for the pandas. Every single time we came in to service the enclosure, Yun Zi had moved pieces of sod around, and Bai Yun had begun to flip sod pieces over as well. At every cleaning we had to put the puzzle back together for them and hope that it would take.

Our keepers are always finding new ways to enrich our animals’ exhibits and try to out-smart our animals. We are grateful for the planning and dedication they give to each and every one of our animals!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Living Life in Front.

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206

Living Life in Front

By
Anastasia Horning
– April 10, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized
Xiao Liwu at 6 months old. He has truly mastered tree climbing these days!

Xiao Liwu at 6 months old. He has truly mastered tree climbing these days!

For a couple of weeks now pandas Xiao Liwu and Bai Yun have been in the front/main viewing area of the San Diego Zoo’s Panda Trek. The cub is extremely good at climbing up to the top of the pine tree and has even found a spot that previous cubs would frequent to take a nap. I think moving to the new exhibit was definitely an adjustment for the cub. He now seems to have a good handle on being out all day in front of his adoring public.

I know for our visitors it can be a little disappointing coming through the line to only see a distant little fur ball, but as we always say, “The bears run the show.” As a panda narrator at the exhibit, I am often asked when the cub will come down or at what time is he more active, but I can guarantee you that there is no schedule for little Wu and mother Bai Yun! Please be patient and realize that this is normal for him to spend the majority of his time at this age in the trees, just like our previous cubs.

Bai Yun has adjusted beautifully living back in the front. I always remind people that she hasn’t been in the front since July. She has found those favorite spots of hers again and has discovered a couple of new positions to sleep in them. One of her favorites is sleeping in Yun Zi’s old hammock with her head hanging over the side. Bai Yun is staying steady weight at about 230 pounds (Xiao Liwu is 27.8 pounds) and is doing a great job with the cub. He comes down from the pine tree on his own to nurse from her, and occasionally I’ve heard her call to the cub to come down.

I want to assure everyone that Bai Yun is doing everything a panda mother should. She is a fantastic mother, not neglectful or overly aggressive. Something I joke about with staff is that this cub doesn’t get her roughhousing nearly as much as Yun Zi did; Yun Zi liked to poke Mom a lot! Our staff watches Bai Yun on Panda Cam as well, and while the Zoo is open, there is always someone out in the queue watching. In the 14 years that Bai Yun has had a cub with her, we have never had to intervene or raise a cub for her, and we are constantly amazed at what she has shown us through the years here at the San Diego Zoo.

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

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165

Panda Cub Gets Cold Feet

By
Anastasia Horning
– March 19, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized
Here he comes. Watch out, snow!

Here he comes. Watch out, snow!

Today, March 19, panda cub Xiao Liwu got to experience snow for the first time! As Bai Yun and the cub came out, Bai Yun went right for the snow, and Xiao Liwu, after a little hesitation, began to run around and get his feet cold. For the pandas, this was a special treat that we attempt to give them when possible, through generous donations. As Bai Yun began to roll and rest in the snow, little Wu began to jump on Mom to roll and play. For about 30 minutes Mom and cub ran and rolled in the snow before the cub began to get tired. He and Mom had so much fun this morning that she completely wore him out, and from about 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. he was sound asleep.

pandas Bai Yun, Xiao Liwu, snow

Bai Yun LOVES that cool, white stuff and her little ankle-biter, too!

For Bai Yun, this was a break for her to get in some breakfast and lounge in the snow for a nice nap. Bai Yun has experienced snow several times during her stay at the San Diego Zoo. She seems to thoroughly enjoy having the change in her environment. In China, it does snow, so while the pandas are here in San Diego they are a bit spoiled with our nice weather. All of the pandas got snow in their enclosures and got to roll and slide around. What fun it was to watch!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

499

Winter Smells!

By
Anastasia Horning
– March 8, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized
Bai Yun sniffs the air as her cub dangles above her this morning.

Bai Yun sniffs the air as her cub dangles above her this morning.

As our weather here in San Diego goes through quick changes from warm to cold to wet, our animals are having quite a bit of fun with the change. For many of us, we can smell rain before if comes, or right afterward. We smell fresh rain on the dirt or grass, and it’s a reminder of how well nature clean things off every now and then.

For myself, I’ve always found it interesting to watch carnivores right after a good rain. Even the pandas will exhibit the behavior of throwing their head back into the air and taking a big whiff of what’s around them. I can sometimes smell a little change in the air, but nothing compared to animals’ sense of smell.

Shortly after a good rain, I begin to see the male pandas re-scent their enclosures, marking territory that is theirs and putting a good mark on there that will stick. So often they will begin to roll around and cover themselves with the scents that have been washed into the ground.

Just a reminder: our pandas will be out during the rain, as they are designed to live through harsh winters that include rain and snow. Our mild San Diego winters are very easy for them to live through. Come see us soon!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Big Guy on the Block.

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196

Big Guy on the Block

By
Anastasia Horning
– March 1, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized

Gao Gao is fueling up for breeding season. Little does he know....

Gao Gao is fueling up for breeding season. Little does he know….

As some San Diego Zoo guests are finding out, Gao Gao is the only panda out for viewing in the main exhibit currently (Bai Yun and her cub, Xiao Liwu continue to charm guests in the north exhibit until noon each day). As construction workers continue building Yun Zi’s artificial tree (which looks great so far!), Gao Gao has been entertaining us with his usual eating and sleeping, and a little extra movement right now.

Many of you know that Bai Yun would typically begin showing some hormonal behaviors as early as March for breeding season, and Gao Gao is letting us know that he is ready. He is currently eating more and gaining weight to show off to that gorgeous female he sees once a year. Of course he will not be breeding this year as Bai Yun is with a cub and not cycling. So the big question everyone’s been asking lately is, “What will Gao Gao do?” This year Gao Gao will just have to cope, and soon he’ll realize that he doesn’t smell a female in estrus.

As for next year’s breeding opportunities, we can’t say. To the best of our knowledge there hasn’t been a female panda to give birth over the age of 21, and Bai Yun will be 22 this coming September. We have observed an older male, Shi Shi, but watching a female for her entire breeding life has taught us so much about what is normal for Bai Yun. She is, after all, a big part of Gao Gao’s success as a breeding male—she is responsive and an amazing mother to her offspring.

Come see us soon, but do not be upset if you see Yun Zi off exhibit as his tree is being constructed!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Pandas: The Big Boys.

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273

Pandas: The Big Boys

By
Anastasia Horning
– February 11, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized
yummy

Life is good for Gao Gao.

As our panda cub is growing and changing on a regular basis, let’s not forget our older boys!

Gao Gao is doing well and has been eating quite a bit. Since he is getting panda bread every day, sometimes our keepers have to spice things up a bit and put either honey or applesauce on the bread to encourage Gao Gao to eat it. The panda bread is made up of bamboo that Gao Gao has rejected from previous meals, ground into a coarse powder, as well as ground leaf eater biscuits, shredded bamboo leaves, gelatin, and water. This is made by our keepers every morning just for Gao Gao and fed out to him throughout the day. Gao Gao’s bamboo is smaller in diameter compared to our other pandas’ diets, and this makes it easier for him to chew and digest.

Yun Zi is doing extremely well and is being a normal three year old. He has had quite a bit of fun scent marking his enclosure. The first few times I saw him leave a scent mark, he would mark the ground, turn around and smell it, and then continue to mark the rest of the enclosure. Of course, eating throughout the day has been a main part of his day; as he is not full grown yet, we may still see him jump up in weight.

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Panda Cub: Growing and Climbing.

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227

Panda Cub: Growing and Climbing

By
Anastasia Horning
– February 8, 2013Posted in: Animal Stories, Animals and Plants, Bears, Pandas, Uncategorized
Cub blah blah

Xiao Liwu practices his climbing skills.

Over the last few weeks, we have watched Xiao Liwu as he acclimates to having people in his environment and handles being on exhibit for longer periods of time. So far he is doing extremely well: sleeps most of the morning, wakes Mom up, and begins to play. As he grows, he has become more sure of himself and has gotten more daring as he plays with his mom, Bai Yun. Each panda cub born here has been different in his or her personality and growth patterns, and it has been an amazing experience watching so many cubs grow up here at the San Diego Zoo.

As Xiao Liwu grows and becomes more confident, one thing we are going to see is much more climbing. Right now there are tree guards on the tree in the north exhibit so that keepers can keep and eye on the baby and get him inside in the afternoon. Once the cub is able to move to the main exhibit, he will have access to the outdoor area all day and access to the nice, big tree. Cubs have to begin climbing at a young age as a defense mechanism, since their mothers go off to eat for several hours of the day. Being up that high makes it less likely that another bear or leopard can reach the cub.

Another behavior that will be fun to watch is the playtime between mom and cub. Through Bai Yun’s actions, Xiao Liwu learns to defend himself. As the baby gets bigger, these actions will change accordingly.

Xiao Liwu’s exhibit is open from 9 a.m. to noon every day for right now, and we will keep you posted on when this may be extended and when the cub may move to the main enclosure. Hope to see you soon at pandas!

Anastasia Horning is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous post, Panda Cub: First Days on View.

SNOW DAY UPDATE: Thanks to our generous Wish List supporters, we raised enough funds to have one snow day for little Xiao Liwu and his family. But we’d like to have another snow play date! Each $10 donation will go toward a second snow day for our “Little Gift” as we hope to raise more funds to have a second snow day in the summer for his first birthday! See our Wish List for details.

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