ATLANTA – Georgians are growing bamboo in their backyards to help feed the pandas at Zoo Atlanta.
Bamboo makes up 98 to 99 percent of pandas’ diets, WABE Radio reported.
In this Jan. 12, 2007 file photo, Giant Panda panda mother Lun Lun , right, eats bamboo as her cub Mei Lan explores her new habitat at Zoo Atlanta. Zoo Atlanta said in a news release Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2016, that its veterinary team obtained an ultrasound image from Lun Lun confirming the presence of a second fetus. Lun Lun, who turns 19 on Thursday, was artificially inseminated in March. Her pregnancy was confirmed Aug. 16. (AP Photo/John Bazemore, File)The zoo’s pandas consume an enormous amount of it – more than 200 pounds between all four of them together – every day.
“When pandas are eating, that’s when they’re happy,” said Kenn Harwood, assistant curator of mammals at the zoo, watching as Yang Yang, a 20-year-old male, sits in his enclosure, legs splayed out in front of him, munching thoughtfully on a pawful of leaves.
“For lack of a better term, he’s a big goofball,” Harwood said. “He’s everybody’s favorite. He’s a great guy. He’s about 300 pounds. Eats a lot of bamboo a day.”