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A pair of giant pandas will soon make the journey from China to the US, where they will be cared for at the San Diego Zoo as part of an ongoing conservation partnership between the two nations, officials said on Monday.
The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance said its caretakers recently visited China to meet the giant pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, ahead of their planned trip to Southern California. An exact date for the handoff has not been set yet.
Xin Bao is a nearly four-year-old female described as “a gentle and witty introvert with a sweet round face and big ears”.
Dr Megan Owen, the alliance’s vice president of conservation science: “Our conservation partners in China shared photographs and personality traits of Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, but meeting them in person was so special.”
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.