BEIJING (AP) – An American-born panda started settling into her new home Thursday in southwest China where she will eventually join a breeding program.
Bao Bao was born at the National Zoo in Washington to panda parents on loan from China. Under an agreement between China and the U.S., such panda cubs must be returned to China before they are 4 years old, the earliest age at which they might begin breeding.
The 3-year-old landed in the city of Chengdu in Sichuan province on Wednesday after a 16-hour flight in a Boeing 777 emblazoned with a picture of a giant bamboo-eating panda. She was accompanied by a veterinarian panda keeper Marty Dearie from the National Zoo, which had put on six days of commemorations to mark her departure.
Transported to the nearby Dujiangyan panda breeding base, Bao Bao emerged from her crate looking somewhat timid and curious, but soon settled in with a snack of fresh bamboo, according to a news release from the China Conservation and Research Center for Giant Pandas.
Bao Bao, whose name means “precious” or “treasure,” will first go through a month-long quarantine at the Dujiangyan base, the research center said. Keepers will monitor her diet, activities and health during that time, including checking her blood and feces, it said.