San Diego Zoo's Last 2 Pandas Being Sent Back To China
SAN DIEGO (CBS13) – The last pandas at the San Diego Zoo are being sent back to China.
CBS8 reported on Monday that the park is losing its panda exhibit. An agreement with China has allowed the two pandas and their offspring to reside at the zoo, but extensions to that original agreement have now expired.
Only two pandas remain at the San Diego Zoo – 28-year-old Bai Yun and her son, 6-year-old Xiao Liwu. Gao Gao, a 28-year-old panda, was returned to China from San Diego back in October.
A pair of pandas has called the San Diego Zoo home since 1996. However, all pandas in the US are only on loan from China – including any offspring they may have.
The zoo has scheduled a celebration for April 6 to say goodbye to the pandas, but exactly when the two will be leaving is unclear.
After the last pandas leave the San Diego Zoo, pandas will only be able to be found in the US at the Smithsonian's National Zoo, the Zoo Atlanta and the Memphis Zoo.