How Atlanta-born pandas are adjusting in China

Zoo Atlantans hungry for news of their expatriate pandas Mei Lan, Xi Lan and Po were happy to receive a recent bulletin from China.

Mei Lan, panda watchers will remember, was the first panda born at Zoo Atlanta to parents Lun Lun and Yang Yang. Born in 2006, Mei Lan moved to China in 2010. This spring, little brother Xi Lan and little sister Po joined their older sibling at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. (All of Atlanta’s pandas — even the ones born here — are on loan from the Chengdu center, located in the Sichuan province.)

In a note to the staff at Zoo Atlanta, James Ayala, a keeper at Chengdu, offered this update on the emigres:

“Since his arrival in Chengdu, Mei Lan has been quite the hit with both the guests and the keepers,” Ayala told Zoo Atlanta. “For the guests, seeing an American-born panda is a bit of a novelty; for the keepers, however, Mei Lan’s extra-personable disposition makes him a pleasure to work with. Over the past four years, Mei Lan has matured from a cute juvenile into a distinguished adult male, and yet he still has maintained a cub-like temperament. For this reason, he is our go-to bear for trying out new enrichment ideas, which he loves.”

Xi Lan and Po are still living in the quarantine area of the Chengdu center, Ayala said, and are adjusting to the Chinese diet.

“Xi Lan has fully adopted the Chengdu diet without reservation; he loves his Sichuan bamboo and our supplemental panda bread,” Ayala said. “Po, on the other hand, is a bit fussier; she has taken to the local bamboo but is not so fond of our panda bread yet.”

Ayala said the two younger pandas will be moved to a public viewing area within a few weeks.