Chinese panda pair acclimatize to new home at San Diego Zoo

Two giant pandas sent to the San Diego Zoo from China last month are acclimating well to their new home, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance said Tuesday.

The pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, are not yet on public display, but the zoo has released the first photos of the pair adjusting to their new habitat.

The pandas, the first to enter the United States in 21 years, arrived on June 27.

Yun Chuan is a male of almost 5 years old and Xin Bao is a female of almost 4.

Zoo staff are working closely with Chinese experts to meet the pandas’ feeding needs and preferences, the alliance said in a statement.

“The teams provided a wide variety of fresh bamboo and even created a local adaptation of wowotou, a traditional Chinese bun, also known as ‘panda bread,’” the statement read.

It will be several weeks before the public can see them, the alliance said.

The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a nearly 30-year partnership with leading conservation institutions in China focused on protecting and recovering giant pandas and the bamboo forests they depend on.

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