These pandas have a one-way ticket back to China!
Tian Tian, 26 years old; Mei Xiang, 25 years old; and her 3-year-old cub, Xiao Qi Ji, boarded a special FedEx plane, adorned with an image of a panda on the nose, to begin their journey home Wednesday.
The Chinese pandas took off on the “Panda Express” from Washington DC, their home for more than a decade, around 1 pm and will make a stop in Anchorage, Alaska, before making their final leg to China. according to flight radar.
They were each given their own special FedEx truck to transport them to Dulles International Airport.
They will be accompanied by two Smithsonian zookeepers and a veterinarian on their nearly 20-hour trip, NBC Washington reported.
The pandas will also have plenty of snacks, including 220 pounds of bamboo, eight pounds of leaf-eating cookie, six pounds of apples, three pounds of sugar cane and one pound of cooked pumpkin, among other options, the outlet reported.
Only four other Chinese pandas are in the United States, in Atlanta, and they are expected to be brought back to China in 2024, once their contract is up, according to CNN.
Tian Tian, 26 years old; Mei Xiang, 25 years old; and her 3-year-old cub Xiao Qi Ji boarded a special FedEx plane, adorned with an image of a panda on the nose, to return home Wednesday. AFP via Getty Images Tian Tian and Mei Xiang arrived at the National Zoo in 2000 and were only supposed to stay at the zoo for 10 years. Getty Images
Tian Tian and Mei Xiang arrived at the National Zoo in 2000 and were only supposed to stay at the zoo for 10 years, but the Smithsonian’s contract with the China Wildlife Conservation Association was extended several times before ending this week.
The couple had four cubs: Tai Shan, Bao Bao, Bei Bei and Xiao Qi Ji, who are still alive today. They also suffered several losses, including a puppy that died after a week in 2012.
Xiao Qi Ji’s brothers returned to China a long time ago, when they were only a few years old. Tai Shan left the D.C. Zoo in 2010, while her sister Bao Bao returned home in 2017 and Bei Bei left in 2019, according to the National Zoo.
Since then, Bao Bao has had puppies of her own.
The Chinese pandas took off on the “Panda Express” from Washington DC, their home for more than a decade, around 1 pm and will make a stop in Anchorage, Alaska, before making their final leg to China.REUTERS Each received their FedEx’s own special truck to transport them to Dulles International Airport. They will be accompanied by two Smithsonian zookeepers and a veterinarian on their nearly 20-hour trip. Xinhua/Shutterstock The couple gave birth to four cubs, Tai Shan, Bao Bao, Bei Bei and Xiao Qi Ji, who are still alive. They also suffered several losses, including a puppy that died after a week in 2012.AFP via Getty Images
National Zoo Director Brandie Smith said it was a “difficult morning” to see the pandas leave, but said there was still a “moment of joy because this is one more step in 50 years of a successful panda conservation program.” giant”.
“Please know that the future is bright for giant pandas. “We remain committed to our program and look forward to celebrating with all of you when the pandas are able to return to DC,” she said, according to NBC Washington.
It is unknown if the pandas will return to the United States as a new contract has not been drawn up.
Chinese diplomat Xu Xueyuan was also at the press conference and wished the pandas “bon voyage.”
The pandas will also have plenty of snacks, including 220 pounds of bamboo, eight pounds of leaf-eating cookie, six pounds of apples, three pounds of sugar cane and one pound of cooked pumpkin, among other options. AP Only four other Chinese pandas are in the United States in Atlanta and are expected to be brought back to China in 2024 once their contract ends.AP
“As a diplomat in Washington, I say goodbye and have a good trip. As an official of the Chinese government, I welcome you,” he said.
Many visitors stopped by the zoo on Wednesday to see the panda exhibit before it closed, as the zoo only said the pandas would be removed “in mid-November,” and were devastated to discover the pandas were already busy packing their bags. .
“I’m going to cry when they leave,” said a visiting boy from Minnesota, according to NBC Washington.
The National Zoo will renovate its panda enclosure in a $2.5 million project and could house other animals temporarily.
The first Chinese pandas arrived at the zoo in 1972 to commemorate President Richard Nixon’s trip to China, NBC Washington reported. The first pandas died in the 1990s and Tian Tian and Mei Xiang arrived in 2000.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn