ATLANTA — Zoo Atlanta's panda twins celebrated a milestone birthday on Tuesday - the duo turned 3 years old on Spet. 3.
Zoo staff honored the twins -Ya Lun and Xi Lun - at two celebrations Tuesday with birthday surprises from the Giant Panda Care Team, who presented with colorful ice “cakes.” Each panda also received a birthday box filled with their favorite produce, including pieces of sweet potato, banana and sugarcane.
While Xi Lun seemed eager to investigate the enrichment during the morning celebration, zoo staff said her sister Ya Lun was more hesitant. That's because Zoo Atlanta says giant pandas are naturally wary of new items and experiences.
By the afternoon celebration, however, both twins appeared in the habitat to check out the day’s surprises, according to the Zoo.
Photos: Zoo Atlanta panda twins turn 3!
Conservation data from Zoo Atlanta says fewer than 1,900 giant pandas are estimated to remain in the wild in China’s Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces. Of these, more than 1,200 live inside nature reserves.
Although the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) downgraded the species’ status from “endangered” to “vulnerable” in 2016, Zoo Atlanta said giant pandas remain heavily reliant on conservation programs. Their threats include habitat fragmentation and habitat loss as a result of deforestation and other human activities.
Zoo Atlanta has contributed more than $10 million in support of wild giant pandas in China and has provided support for reforestation projects, conservation education programs, giant panda nurseries and field research programs and supplies.
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To learn more about the giant panda program at Zoo Atlanta at zooatlanta.org, and keep up with Ya Lun, Xi Lun and their parents Lun Lun and Yang Yang on PandaCam.