Today marked the 100th day since the new baby panda was born at the San Diego Zoo. As such, it was the traditional time for her to receive a name. Over 2,400 names were submitted for consideration, and the final four were voted upon online by people from all over the globe.An excited crowd gathered inside of the Zoo's Hunte Amphitheater, keepers, members, news crews, and visitors from near and very far together in a sea of panda shirts and hats. The stage was set with three ornately covered easels, a panda podium, and the program's speakers: Zoo President, Zoo CEO, Deputy Consul General of China, Curator of Mammals, and Co-Head of the Giant Panda Conservation Unit.
The Zoo's giant panda program was implemented in 1996, and it received its first two pandas from China, Shi Shi, a wild caught male, and Bai Yun, a female that was the first successful birth at the China Conservation and Research Center for Pandas. Shi Shi wasn't really interested in Bai Yun, however, and the first cub, Hua Mei, was born in August 1999 after artificial insemination. Hua Mei was the first panda born outside of China to go to China, where she went on to birth three sets of twins to date. In 2003, Shi Shi returned to China in exchange for Gao Gao, another male. Gao Gao took right to Bai Yun, and the newest baby marks their third cub together, following Mei Sheng and Su Lin.An amazing team has developed at the Zoo, where keepers, vets, horticulturalists, researchers, educators, and even operational staff collaborate to care for the pandas and promote conservation. They have learned and advanced husbandry techniques, management, veterinary skills, and research technology that can now be taken and applied anywhere. Panda pregnancies can be detected earlier than ever and it's now possible to chart the growth progress of baby pandas in utero. Much more is understood about panda biology, nutritional and psychological needs, communication, how they care for their young, and the behavior and physiology that supports reproduction. The panda population is currently around 1,600 animals, and where the population wasn't self-sustainable previously, it has now improved dramatically! A network of habitat protection stations has been established to help this along.
Nearing the moment everyone was waiting for, the speakers were followed by traditional dancing by the Lucky Lion Dancers, dressed as two ornate, sparkly, magical Chinese dragons. Finally, the name was revealed as the three easels were unveiled. The new panda's name was displayed in traditional Chinese, contemporary Chinese, and English. Zhen Zhen! Pronounced like "juhn juhn", it is from a Mandarin dialect and means "precious". It is expected that her mother Bai Yun will be ready to bring her out in about a month for all to see. The ceremony was rounded off with a small buffet of delicious traditional Chinese dishes and fortune cookies for everyone. We can't wait to meet you Zhen Zhen!
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