Roughly a month and a half after Mei Xiang’s artificial insemination, things at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat are settling into their regular routine.
breeding season is finished, though Tian Tian is still showing signs of rut, and Bei
Veterinarians are giving Mei Xiang weekly ultrasounds to track changes in her uterus. Though it’s too early to see a possible cub on an ultrasound, SCBI scientists detected a rise in hormones, indicating Mei Xiang will either give birth or experience the end of a pseudopregnancy in 30 to 50 days.
August Birthdays Bei Bei and Tian Tian are celebrating birthdays later this month
You’re invited to a housewarming celebration! The new visitor interpretive exhibit in the panda house is finished and we would love for everyone to come visit and see it.
Bei Bei and the red pandas, Asa and Jackie, will receive their treats in their yards
As the year winds down, we’re reflecting on some of our biggest conservation success stories of 2019.
Panda Conservation Giant panda fans far and wide said a bittersweet goodbye to Bei
Activity at the giant panda habitat has slowed since the flurry of breeding season in May. Keepers, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute scientists and veterinarians were monitoring Mei Xiang very closely to determine when she would ovulate. Her chance to conceive a cub arrived May 25. Now, almost two months later, it’s the calm before they start scrutinizing Mei Xiang’s hormones again.
Bei Bei continues to be his playful self.
Tian Tian is ready for breeding season. He is in full rut, which means that he frequently scent marks and can be very restless. Those are normal behaviors for a male panda readying himself for breeding.
March 23, 2017 Giant Panda Breeding Season is Almost Here Bei
Who’s black, white and ready to paw-ty? As part of the Pandaversary celebration, Asia Trail keepers threw a bearthday fête fit for our beloved giant panda family.
She has given birth to four cubs: male Tai Shan, female Bao Bao, male Bei Bei and
The panda house is closed to the public beginning today, Sept. 1 to provide quiet for Mei Xiang as she enters the final stages of a pregnancy or pseudopregnancy.
Visitors can still see Tian Tian and Bei Bei outside.
Mei Xiang has started exhibiting more behaviors consistent with the secondary hormone phase of a pregnancy or a pseudopregnancy. That means that she has been spending the majority of her time sleeping. Simultaneously, she is starting to build a nest in her den and to eat less. Keepers have also seen the first signs of self-grooming from her. All of these behaviors are expected and normal for a female in the secondary hormone phase.
Bei Bei’s Second Birthday Bei Bei turned two years old Aug. 22!
Giant panda Mei Xiang continues to be a wonderful mother to her newborn. Last night, she gently set the cub down on the floor of their den and walked into her main indoor enclosure to drink some water.
When her last cub, Bei Bei, was born Aug. 22, 2015, she didn’t take her first bite
