A Milestone for Su Lin
Posted at 9:12 am July 26, 2006 by Megan OwenTime flies!
Next week is Su Lin’s first birthday. It is hard to fathom that a whole year has passed since she was born. I think it is fair to say that this first year of Su Lin’s life was watched, in great detail, more than any other giant panda cub born here at the San Diego Zoo. It has been a great pleasure sharing all the developmental milestones of her first year with so many panda enthusiasts. Since her first squawk (at about 5 seconds of age!) we have all watched her as she developed her first signs of black and white coloring, supported herself on her front legs and eventually all fours, grew a fluffy coat of fur, and began to crawl and play with her mother, Bai Yun. All of us involved with her first year will spend time this week reflecting on the many changes we have witnessed over the past year.
Now when I look out my window and see her in her favorite tree perch, I can’t help but think of all the dramatic life changes that she will experience in the coming year. Year two is an important one in the life of a panda cub. Su Lin will follow a pattern very similar to her siblings, Hua Mei and Mei Sheng. She will begin to eat bamboo regularly and soon it will be her primary nutritional source. Of course she will get bigger and stronger, but most importantly, at about 18 months of age, she will be weaned from her mother and begin her life as a solitary bear””just like a wild panda.
We hope that you all continue to watch Su Lin in her second year of life and share in all the changes coming on the horizon.
Happy Birthday, Su Lin!
Megan Owen is a research laboratory coordinator for the Office of Giant Panda Conservation/CRES.
Watch pandas daily on Panda Cam.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Scroll to the end to leave a comment. Pinging is not allowed.
July 26th, 2006 at 10:03 am
Yes, watching Su Lin grow and become more active has been so exciting to me. Every morning I get my ‘panda fix’ by watching Su Lin and Tai Shan (if they aren’t hiding in the tree). Will Su Lin have a birthday party? Have not seen any info about it. Keep up the good work in nuturing these wonderful animals.
July 26th, 2006 at 10:41 am
Just witnessed some great camera work of Su Lin trotting after mama Bai Yun. Su Lin was obviously wanting to play with mama but Bai Yun ignored her.
Camera is now on Mei Sheng, and he’s grown so big and handome!
July 26th, 2006 at 10:42 am
Happy Birthday, beautiful Su Lin! I plan to come to your birthday celebration. Look for me. I will be wearing black and white.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:10 pm
Megan, if I could look out my office window & see Su Lin, I’d never get any work done! Any special plans for her birthday? I’ll be there on Sat. 8/5 to wish her a happy belated birthday in person, then again on 8/19 for Mei Sheng’s birthday. It has been fascinating to watch Su Lin develop physically and to see her personality develop too. She is so much fun to watch: so methodical when she climbs, so thorough when she nurses, so quick & playful when she runs from Bai and then glances back to make sure Bai is following her, so kicked back when she munches little bamboo stalks. Thank you all for taking such good care of our panda family and thanks to all fellow panda fans for sharing your knowledge, feelings and creativity!
July 26th, 2006 at 1:31 pm
Oh jeesh – here come the tears again. They’re a mix of happy and sad – happy that my little princess fancy pants is such a happy and healthy little bear, but sad because she is getting so big and will eventually leave us. Give her some extra birthday treats for me – and a kiss and scratch on the tummy. Wishing her many happy birthdays and all the bamboo she can eat! Happy birthday little one – I love you!
July 26th, 2006 at 1:52 pm
When I first ” met” Su Lin, she was about 15 lb and walking wobbly. And she was pink! It’s just amazing how much she’s grown. I’m very much looking forward to her year 2. At what point are you going to start training her with various commands?
Also, have you started changing Mei Sheng’s diet to suit that of Chinese? I understand they serve limited variety of bamboo, and Hua Mei had a hard time adjusting. It’s time for our teenager panda to leave home and head for college. It’s sad, but it’ll be good for him. Mei Sheng has so much to offer the Chinese researchers. And I want Mei Sheng to play with other kids, run around bigger yard, teach other kids all the tricks he’s learned, and destroy everything in his new dig! I can picture Chinese keepers going, ” Ai yah! Crazy American boy!”
July 26th, 2006 at 2:32 pm
I want to wish little Su Lin a very happy 1st birthday! She is truly adorable and it is quite amazing that she has never fallen more than 6 feet from the tree, the first panda not to do so. I understand Mei Sheng used to fall from the tree all the time, lol. I would echo the question that others have posed and ask about the San Diego Zoo’s plans for her 1st birthday celebration as I am sure lots of people will be interested to hear about that. Hopefully it will snow that day:)
I will be at the zoo for her first birthday for sure! I’ll be wearing black and white too:)
July 26th, 2006 at 2:46 pm
I’ve been watching your panda cam since Hua Mei was born and the wonder of seeing these tiny little babies grow into strong, confident, playful young adults never gets any less – they are truly one of nature’s greatest miracles! From such a helpless, precarious start in life they grow almost before our very eyes and we all long for the next development while wishing they could stay tumbling cubs for ever!
I can’t believe it is a year already since Su Lin arrived – hope she has a wonderful birthday and that if she gets a ‘cake’ (I’m sure the animal care staff have something planned!), Bai Yun will let Su Lin get a look-in! Hope the boys don’t get left out? I’m sure they won’t, we can see how loved they all are.
Happy birthday Su Lin, and well done Bai Yun, you’re doing a fine job!
July 26th, 2006 at 3:03 pm
Thank you so much for all your hard work on behalf of these magnificent animals. Thank you for the good care you give Su Lin, and for allowing panda lovers all over the world to watch this darling little panda princess grow up!
Happy birthday, sweet Su Lin. *kiss*
July 26th, 2006 at 7:22 pm
Wish I could be there for the Princess’s party. But I’ll be thinking of her and remembering this last, wonderful year:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SU LIN !!
A little Panda Princess was born a year ago,
Bai Yun and Gao Gao’s royal gift to proud San Diego.
Right from the first she seemed to know she had a Destiny,
And set about becoming what she was meant to be.
Tiny, sweet, and serious, cautious and so smart,
The latest star on Panda Cam has won the whole world’s heart.
Making mud pies with Bai Yun or sleeping high in trees,
Our ” little bit of something cute†has learned it all with ease.
Paddling in the panda pool, snacking on her “boo,
Snitching Mother’s biscuits, and snarfing frooties too,
We’ve shared her cub adventures (She’s just grown up so fast!)
So Happy Birthday sweet Su Lin. You’re a BIG girl at last!
July 26th, 2006 at 11:04 pm
Happy birthday, cute fluffy Su Lin! It’s incredible to watch her grow day by day from the other side of the world. Lots of wishes from Europe, and many thanks to the whole team for making all this possible! Long live our beloved pandas
July 27th, 2006 at 12:21 am
Can’t we panda-nap Mei Sheng to prevent him from leaving? (Just kidding)
I bet if this blog was around when Hua Mei was born , you woulda had a TON of responses. Good thing we have blogs now. I just wish the Tai Shan also had a place where we could leave comments.
Finally I can’t wait for Su’s birthday celebration! Must be steamy in San Diego this time of the year.
July 27th, 2006 at 6:40 am
Happy Happy Birthday Su Lin! Can’t wait to see how she tackles her birthday cake!
July 27th, 2006 at 6:41 am
Conversation Log of Space Station Eagle 2006-Q3 #2
(otherwise known as ” Conversation with Gao Gao #9″ )
Steve: So any messages received this morning?
Joe: Yes, from Earth Command Centers SD405, NZ076, Wolong542.
S: Anything interesting?
J: Here’s a data packet sent by charming Gao Gao, includes a digital video file.
S: Shall we view it then?
J: Certainly.
(Gao Gao’s video clip)
Gao Gao: Happy birthday… happy birthday (strums ukelele)
Bai Yun: To you… to you… to you (waves fairy wand)
Mei Sheng: Dear Su Lin… (flaps paws)
GG,BY,MS: Happy birthday to you. (as they leap onto ground from respective perches)
Su Lin: Yaaaaay. Thank you everyone. What a BIG fruitsicle. YUM.
S: Look. Mei Sheng and Su Lin wearing sparkling butterfly wings?
J: I like Gao Gao’s cool shades though. And straw hat.
S: Bai Yun’s got ostrich feathers in her hat!
J: Ah, the new fashion plates.
S: Happy birthday, Su Lin.
J: Happy birthday, Su Lin.
July 27th, 2006 at 7:26 am
It is exciting that the third San Diego panda baby is having a first birthday. This record for any zoo would be amazing. I have been having my 5th grade students watch the growth of these three since Hua Mei’s birth. They have come to also ” adopt” these wonderful animals. They have gained an appreciation for these endangered animals and other endangered animals around the world. I truly believe this is the most important thing about Panda Cam and what you’re doing at SDZ. Thank you SDZ and see you on August 2nd. Happy Birthday Su Lin.
July 27th, 2006 at 8:51 am
I have been watching Sue Lin this morning she was quite funny, I know you are having a bit of a heat wave out there have the pandas been taking it ok?? And is there any info abount Mei Sheng going back, I know it will be hard but I am sure China looks forward to him coming home.
July 27th, 2006 at 9:37 am
Happy Birthday our precious baby. How wonderful to be loved by so many. I wish I could hold you in my arms and sing you a sweet birthday song. Many kisses, tickles, and lots of love~
July 27th, 2006 at 9:51 am
Enjoyed watching mother and daughter this morning. Have you noticed any changes in the pandas behavior since you started allowing them to have continuous access to their outside enclosures, instead of putting them inside at night?
Panda Cam viewers might also enjoy watching the Elephant Cam. Umgani is due to give birth soon.
July 27th, 2006 at 10:45 am
I have a question that has been nagging at me for months and hope that you might be able to answer it. It is this: What accounts for the differences in behavior between Su Lin and Tai Shan? The behaviors I’m referring to are the amount of time Su Lin spends sleeping and the amount of time she spends playing with her mother. She seems much more aloof than Tai. Tai seems to spend much of his day near Mei or wrestling with Mei. Is it simply a matter of disposition or do environmental and parental factors play into the differences? I live in Virginia and spend inordinate amounts of time watching the National Zoo’s panda cam and much less time with San Diego zoo’s cam so I may be missing out on a lot of the interaction between Su and Bai. There just appears to be noticeable differences in the babies’ behaviors.
Like everyone else, I am looking forward to the birthday celebration and offer best wishes for lots of biscuits and fruitsicles for the birthday girl. What time is will it begin?
July 27th, 2006 at 1:28 pm
Happy, happy birthday Su Lin! I hope your next year in life will be just as good as your first year.
BTW, I’m just a bit curious: according to Bai Yun’s bio, she was the first successful panda born in captivity at Wolong. When is Bai Yun’s birthday, and does the panda staff celebrate her birthday as well?
July 27th, 2006 at 3:37 pm
Little Su Lin, you’ve grown so quickly…it was wonderful watching you, small and pink and squealy, develop into the beautiful thoughtful bundle of sweetness you are now. Happy Birthday little one…
Lovely birthday song Pam G – your words always capture the essence!!
July 27th, 2006 at 8:49 pm
Hi, Haven’t visited this blog for a while. 8/31 is coming. Does anyone know if Mei Sheng will be leaving US? If yes, when is he leaving and where will he be? Thanks.
July 27th, 2006 at 10:05 pm
Dear Su Lin,
You’ve come a long way baby!
from a pink funny-looking LOUD alien
to a beautiful black and white princess.
Many milestones… sitting, crawling, walking, running, climbing, eating bamboo and splashing in the pool.
Many more things to learn, so much still to do. We will enjoy watching it all.
You have grown into a lovely panda adolescent. We are proud of you.
Keep learning, growing, and amazing us!
Love, your loyal fans
July 27th, 2006 at 11:39 pm
I love appearance that Su Lin moves about in the Research Station in cuteness.
When I think that she becomes solitary bear in four more months, I feel lonely about it.
I wish that I want Su Lin and Bai Yun to live in the same area as together as possible.
Because they are pandas that live in the zoo…
I am watching Su Lin grow up healthily from Japan in the distant country every day.
And, I am very looking forward to it.
Happy Birthday to Su Lin!
July 28th, 2006 at 4:41 am
P Wong – too cute – this one was a real laugh out loud!!!!!
Wow, it’s been quite a year at the SDZ and NZ – watching Su and Tai grow into beautiful young Pandas; little Koza struggling to be born and making friends with a dog (Cairo), then losing our sweet baby to a dreadful accident; following ” Harry’s” fight for life and making it; finding out that several baby elephants are on the way; the births of lion and tiger cubs; the horribly sad and untimely deaths of two gorillas and an elephant; the countless births of so many little ones; watching little? Kandula and Moose (young elephants) grow…and grow…and grow – LOL…just to name a few. Thank you to both Zoos for your websites and most especially these blogs.
Now, to the issue at hand. Happy 1st Birthday sweet Su Lin. Looking forward to your next year and watching you grow, play, get into mischief, and just be adorable!!!!
I read somewhere on the Washington web site that they’re trying to negotiate keeping Tai until he’s of breeding age – any chance of that happening with Mei? That would be awesome!!!!!!
July 28th, 2006 at 1:09 pm
I also am wondering about C. Johnson’s comment. Tai is very active compared to Su Lin.
July 28th, 2006 at 3:03 pm
Happy Birthday, Su Lin! August 2nd is my birthday, too! Maybe I’ll come see you on your birthday! I’ve been enjoying watching you grow up this past year. You are adorable!
July 28th, 2006 at 4:35 pm
Wishing a happy, joyful and FUN birthday to San Diego’s cutest lil princess Su Lin. I hear there may be some white stuff for our girl and that would be wonderful to see! Counting down the days til the 2nd, and looking forward to seeing the festivities at SDZ. Thanks to all the staff who make it possible for us to see these wonderful and endearing bears.
July 29th, 2006 at 12:03 pm
Happy Birthday, Su Lin. You’ve grown into such a beauty! Thank you so much for sharing this year with us!
July 30th, 2006 at 8:09 am
P. Wong and Pamela G., I am really enjoying your writings. It has been amazing watching lil Su Lin grow from a tiny helpless newborn to the curious, confident, lovely and talented tree climbing young lady she is today. I look forward to watching her and her family and am eager to see what comes next in her learning and development. Happy, happy birthday, dear panda princess, and may it be the first of many joyous days of celebration for you!
July 30th, 2006 at 11:48 am
Happy First Birthday, Su Lin!
July 30th, 2006 at 3:44 pm
Mei Sheng was so adorable today, all curled up and snoozin’. About 4:30 San Diego time, it was great to watch Princess Royal Su Lin having an extended tussle with Queen Bai Yun. The differences between Tai and Su are enormous- just like those differences in people!
July 31st, 2006 at 6:22 am
P.Wong and Pamela: Beautiful as ever. Pam, you have such a beautiful way with words. P.Wong ,you are so out of this world. But I just want to wish our little princess the happiest of Birthdays, you have grown so fast it’s so had to believe it’s been a year. Enjoy all the fruities and biscuits that come your way, and share some with the family. Hugs and love.
July 31st, 2006 at 8:01 am
Happy birthday, Princess Su Lin! Wish I could come to your birthday party on Wednesday, but I will come & see you on Saturday!
July 31st, 2006 at 9:50 am
Happy Birthday, Little One. I have been watching you via the panda cam since you were born. It is hard to believe one year has already passed. It has given me much joy to watch you interact with your mom this last year, and I will continue to watch you as often as I can. Enjoy this special day with the special goodies provided by those who love you. Happy Birthday!!
July 31st, 2006 at 3:49 pm
Happy Birthday, Su Lin!! I have watched you since you scooted around in your round den. You stole my heart as I watched you sleep and snuggle with your mom, Bai Yun. I will keep watching as you continue to grow because you are a cutie pie.
Happy Birthday from the state of Maine ; )
July 31st, 2006 at 5:54 pm
An Interview With Su Lin (#4)
Reporter: ” Good morning, Su Lin!â€
Su Lin: ” Good morning! It’s a good day today! It’s not too hot, and my bamboo is very good!
R: ” You sound excited. Is it because tomorrow is your birthday?â€
S: ” YES!! I am vewy, vewy….(ahem) very, very happy! I have birthday cards from everywhere, and Mother says there will be many, many watchers tomorrow, and…
R: ” Excuse me…..watchers?â€
S: ” Watchers. The ones who walk around and look at us. And Mother says there will be TREATS! Frooties and biscuits and many, many good things to eat! And someone told me that my Big Brother will have a special treat for me, too! Something about when I was tiny and everyone thought I looked like a little butterfly spread out in the den and they called me Princess Butterfly and….and…Oh MY!â€
R: (Laughing) Well, you are certainly growing up!â€
S: ” Yes! I am almost 1 year old, and I am such a BIG girl now! Mother says that soon I will be able to have a den of my own and I will learn new things that she can not teach me. She says that I will learn to do many things and will get treats when I do them right. I think I will like that very much!â€
R: ” I’m sure you will. You’re a smart girl and will get lots of treats. Tell me about your birthday cards.â€
S: ” There are so many! And they come from everywhere! I didn’t know everyone likes me so much! Mother says I must be polite and thank everyone, but there are so many that I have to have help to answer them all.â€
R: ” I know. I sent you a birthday card and got a lovely “Thank You’ note with your picture on it.â€
S: (Delighted) ” You DID?! Thank you!â€
R: ” You’re welcome, Princess.â€
S: ” Ummmm…about that picture……..â€
R: ” Yes?â€
S: ” Big Brother said to be sure they got my good side…..â€
R: (Laughing) ” Happy Birthday, Miss Smarty Paws Princess Su Lin !â€
July 31st, 2006 at 6:44 pm
Happy Birthday, Su Lin! I just noticed that the National Zoo had a giant panda photo contest. It was a real pleasure looking at pictures of Mei and Tian through the seasons. With all the photos taken of Su, why not have a contest celebrating her first year? Just a thought!
July 31st, 2006 at 10:11 pm
Happy Birthday, dear little Princess. You have many, many fans all over the world. You are very lucky to have a wonderful Mommy, and such wonderful keepers who all take such good care of you. Much love to you, your Mommy, Daddy, and older brother. We love you all!
August 1st, 2006 at 12:56 pm
Happy Birthday, Su Lin! Haven’t really been able to watch you grow as the images from the zoo are too dark to watch for any period of time. Don’t mean to be rude but …. panda lovers all over the world are DEMANDING a bigger, brighter picture from the San Diego Zoo. Give us the giant pandas we need and want!
Happy Birthday. Keep her cool. She deserves the VIP treatment on her birthday and everyday. Best wishes to all the giant pandas at the San Diego Zoo.
August 1st, 2006 at 7:23 pm
Just wanted to wish a happy / happy birthday to a precious , adorable and special little panda girl — Aug. 2 is also my birthday ( I, however, will be a little older than princess ) but I can’t imagine a more wonderful gift than sharing a birthday with Su Lin — I am single and have no children, so Su Lin has ( thru Panda Cam) become like my own — thank Bai Yun and Gao Gao for this most unique little creature — and a big, big thanks and hug to zoo staff for making it possible thru cyber space for me to be part of Su Lin’s first year ( and many more to come )– please give the whole panda family a big kiss and hug from a nurse in Iowa.