Life with Dylan

Category: Panda

  • The San Diego Zoo now has a “little gift” Xiao Liwu

    After much anticipation and almost 35,000 votes the San Diego Zoo announced the name of the newest panda cub in a public ceremony this morning. Following the Chinese cultural tradition, the panda cub was not named until it was 100 days old. After receiving more than 7,000 submissions for a name, the possible names were narrowed down to six and the public voted in an online poll.

    Today this “little one” turned 107 days old and was given the name Xiao Liwu.

    For those that have been following along, watching the panda cam and squealing with excitement each time the zoo posted a video of the cubs weekly check-ups, today was another milestone.
    Xiao Liwu is the sixth giant panda cub born to Bai Yun at the zoo and he certainly is a little gift to the world and the San Diego Zoo family. Finally, we can put a name to that precious little face.

    Photo taken on November 13, 2012, by Ken Bohn, San Diego Zoo.

  • Endangered Species Monday – Giant Panda

    The giant panda is probably the most universally known symbol for conservation.

    Once widespread through southern and eastern China, the giant pandas current range is a limited area of northwestern China. Poaching for skin and body parts, along with the loss of the giant pandas habitat (bamboo harvesting and human development) are the two main factors that are keeping the Giant Panda on the endangered species list. Despite the many efforts made by China and successful panda breeding centers like the San Diego Zoo, the future of giant pandas is uncertain. While the numbers are thought to be increasing, there is still work to be done to save these beautiful animals.

    For more information about the giant pandas, what is being done to save them, and what you can do to help visit the WWF website worldwildlife.org/species/giant-panda

  • Birthday fun with Yun Zi at the San Diego Zoo

    Last week Yun Zi turned 3 years old and we spent the day celebrating with the pandas at the San Diego Zoo. Arriving just as the zoo opened, we headed straight to the panda exhibit to watch Yun Zi get his ice cake.

    The zoo was still buzzing about the birth of the new panda, but today was all about Yun Zi. Dylan has become quite fond of Yun Zi and even wrote his birthday on the calendar so we wouldn’t forget.

    Yun Zi’s exhibit was decorated with several boxes full of treats and bamboo – and of course he had an ice cake with a big #3 on top. The cake was almost as big as him, and in true kid fashion he went right for the top. The decorations didn’t last too long and this was the only picture I got before Yun Zi began to demolish the cake.

    After breaking the #3, Yun Zi moved on to the sweet and sour bamboo box that was perched high atop a tree branch. Being the inquisitive three-year-old that he is, Yun Zi wasn’t thinking about the box falling.

    Well, that was fun. Now there is more bamboo on the ground for him to eat. He liked it so much that he decided to eat double-fisted, er should I say double-pawed.

    For more pictures of Yun Zi and the pandas at the San Diego Zoo visit my flickr album.

  • Panda Love

    The last few days have been nothing but panda talk at my house … not to mention the various media outlets. Bai Yun made history on Monday when she gave birth to her 6th cub at the San Diego Zoo. This was a high risk pregnancy because of her age and ever since learning that she was showing signs of pregnancy, my son and I have been keeping our fingers crossed that all went well.

    We have spent hours watching the Panda Cam trying to catch a glimpse of the cub, but Bai Yun has been holding the cub very close. It amazes me that such big animal can hold something so small and not harm it.

    Today a video was released by the San Diego Zoo showing Bai Yun leave her cub for a brief moment to get a drink of water and the squeals were non-stop from my home. I am sure they could be heard down the block. The baby is just too cute.

    More than just a successful high risk pregnancy, this panda birth makes the San Diego Zoo the most successful Panda Breeding Center outside of China. That is some pretty big conservation news to brag about. Way to go San Diego Zoo and congratulations to Bai Yun and Gao Gao.

    I took the above photo of Gao Gao on July 4, 2012