Ellie recalls the first 10 years of giant pandas at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous blog, The Panda Decade, Part 3.

It seemed to take forever, but February 2000 finally arrived and preparations were underway for Hua Mei’s public debut. For this first surviving U.S.-born cub, the attention to detail, the care taken to insure that both she and mother Bai Yun would be comfortable and calm before the public, were extraordinary. Bai Yun’s exhibit now contained a new den, the one that can be seen in our current right-hand viewing area. That side had been walled and gated to restrict access should the mother or cub show any distress. Small groups of employees from many departments were brought into the area as part of the acclimation process, allowing Hua Mei (pictured) to become accustomed to the sight and minor sounds of human viewers in large numbers. And then it was time!
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It finally happened last month, with a little help from some friends. Su Lin came out of her tree and I was able to see her in all her glory! For this panda cub, timing seems to be everything and on uncountable morning and occasional mid-day shifts, the most common view of her is from below. Su Lin has been at her most active during the times that the San Diego Zoo is closed and we’re not there to witness it in person. But on this day, some staff who had rotated through the panda area earlier in the year stopped by to see their former charge, and she allowed herself to be coaxed out of the tree to be treated and admired.
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Despite San Diego’s recent inclement weather, the rain showers and strong winds have not stopped me from recording the conversations made over the holidays by our family of Gabriella’s crested gibbons at the Wild Animal Park. Our ongoing gibbon research project (see a previous blog, Cheetah Chirps and Gibbon Duets) has involved watching and recording gibbon behavior. Most fascinating are the calls or songs that each member of the family makes.
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