50 Years Of Giant Pandas’Presence InUs Celebrated

王靜靜

The Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington kicked off asix- month celebration on Wednesday of the 50th anniversary ofthe arrival of two giant pandas，celebrating the close cooperationbetween China and the United States in panda exchanges andpreservation.

The first pandas from China in the US—Ling Ling and HsingHsing—arrived at the Smithsonian National Zoo and ConservationBiology Institute on April 16，1972.

“We are going to have six months of celebrations both onlineand at the zoo. People can come to see the cubs and the mom anddad，”Brandie Smith，director of the national zoo，told ChinaDaily.

Annalisa Meyer，the zoo’s deputy director of communications，said the celebrations will run through Aug 27. The zoo will holdonline events，as well as on-site events on April 8 and 21.

Smith said one of the highlights will be a“screening of thefilm，The Miracle Panda，which is our story of the giant pandasat the national zoo. And we also are going to have an event withthe Chinese embassy. The embassy is going to come and providetreats for people as they see the pandas.”

The documentary The Miracle Panda，by the SmithsonianChannel，will be screened for a limited time at the zoo’s VisitorCenter Theater on April 16 and 17.

Also on April 16，from 9 am to 2 pm，visitors can enjoylion dance performances， panda- shaped Bao buns andcalligraphy demonstrations. They also can speak with the zoo’sscientists who study giant panda biology and ecology，andthey can watch the pandas receive special treats.

The Giant Panda Family Tree Photo Gallery in theoutdoor giant panda exhibit has already been set up，allowingvisitors to explore the zoo’s successful giant panda breedingprogram and to follow how cubs born at the zoo contribute totheir species’survival in China.

In 1972，then-US president Richard Nixon and first ladyPat Nixon made a historic visit to China. The first lady went tothe Beijing Zoo to visit pandas on their second day in China.

At a dinner before they left China，Premier Zhou Enlaitold Pat Nixon that China would present the US with twopandas，which surprised and delighted her.

The two pandas，Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing，lived at thenational zoo for more than 20 years. Their arrival not onlybrought warmth and joy to tens of millions of Americans butalso launched the US-China giant panda program.

Now the panda couple，Mei Xiang and Tian Tian，andtheir cub Xiao Qi Ji（“l(fā)ittle miracle”），born in August 2020，live at the national zoo.

Mei Xiang and Tian Tian’s other three cubs，Tai Shan，born in 2005;Bao Bao，born in 2013;and Bei Bei，born in2015，were returned to China.

Smith recalled that the males，Bei Bei and Xiao Qi Ji are“more outgoing”than their brother Tai Shan.

“I met these pandas;I know them so well，I rememberthe moments all of the cubs were born here. And one thing isthat we know when they are born that they’re going to go toChina to be part of the group breeding program，”she said.

“So it’s almost like any baby. When any baby grows up，you don’t want them to stay with you if you want them to goout and to succeed，and so our cubs will go to China，and theywill have their cubs and help contribute to the conservation of thespecies.”

Smith said she has been impressed by the cooperation withthe zoo staff’s counterparts in China.

“I have really loved working with the giant pandas. They’reincredible animals to work with and get to know them as aspecies. But also，one of my favorite parts is it’s not just aboutworking with these animals. It has been about working withcolleagues in China，”she said.

“So working with our scientists and other contributors inChina to share knowledge about pandas，their habitat and theirculture has really been an incredible experience for me.”

The COVID- 19 pandemic has created obstacles for inpersoncommunications.

“Normally we go to China several times a year，and ourcolleagues are trying to come here to visit us. With thepandemic，it’s been hard because we haven’t been able to seeeach other in person，but the good thing is that we still haveemails，video calls and other ways to communicate，”Smith said.

“And from my perspective，it has been as good as it alwaysis. Because we’ve had such a good relationship over so manyyears，we respond to each other so well.”

She said she hoped the program“could last for at leastanother 50 years”.

During the interview with Smith，Mei Xiang and Xiao Qi Jifrolicked in an outdoor field of the panda house，while Tian Tianleisurely chewed on bamboo in another field as visitors streamedin to observe the pandas.

Brooklyn，a 3- year- old girl，told China Daily that shewanted“more panda mommies and panda babies”to come to thezoo.

Sue，62，who was on her annual family vacation，had justvisited the pandas at Zoo Atlanta and was now seeing the pandasinWashington.

為慶祝兩只大熊貓抵美50 周年及中美兩國在大熊貓交流和保護方面的密切合作，華盛頓史密森尼國家動物園于3 月16 日啟動為期六個月的慶?；顒?。

1972 年4 月16 日，第一批中國大熊貓玲玲和興興來到美國史密森尼國家動物園和保護生物研究所。

該動物園園長布蘭迪·史密斯在接受《中國日報》采訪時稱：“我們將在網(wǎng)上和動物園舉行為期六個月的慶?；顒?。游客們可以觀看大熊貓幼崽和它們的爸爸媽媽?！?/p>

動物園公關(guān)副總監(jiān)安娜莉莎·邁耶稱，慶?；顒訉⒊掷m(xù)到8 月27 日。動物園將在4 月8 日和21 日舉辦線上和線下活動。

史密斯透露，活動的一個亮點是“放映電影《奇跡熊貓》，這部電影講述的是史密森尼國家動物園里大熊貓的故事。我們還將與中國大使館一起舉辦活動，大使館工作人員會來動物園并給參觀大熊貓的游客提供（給熊貓享用）的‘零食’?！?/p>

史密森尼頻道紀錄片《奇跡熊貓》將于4 月16 日和17 日在動物園游客中心劇院限時放映。

4 月16 日上午9 點至下午2 點，游客們還可以觀看舞獅表演、書法表演，品嘗大熊貓面點。他們還可以與研究大熊貓生物學和生態(tài)學的動物園科學家交談，并觀看大熊貓享用“零食”的過程。

戶外大熊貓展的大熊貓家譜影廊已經(jīng)建成，游客可以了解史密森尼國家動物園成功的大熊貓繁育項目，以及在該動物園出生的幼崽如何為大熊貓在中國的物種繁衍做出貢獻。

1972 年，時任美國總統(tǒng)理查德·尼克松和第一夫人帕特·尼克松對中國進行了歷史性訪問。第一夫人抵達中國的第二天到北京動物園參觀大熊貓。

在尼克松夫婦離開中國前的一次晚宴上，周恩來總理告訴帕特·尼克松，中國將向美國贈送兩只熊貓，這讓她既驚訝又高興。

這兩只熊貓玲玲和興興在史密森尼國家動物園生活了20 多年。它們的到來不僅給數(shù)千萬美國人帶來溫暖和歡樂，還開啟了中美大熊貓項目。

現(xiàn)在，熊貓夫婦美香和添添，以及它們的幼崽——2020 年8 月出生的小奇跡居住在動物園里。

美香和添添的另外三只幼崽2005 年出生的泰山、2013 年出生的寶寶和2015 年出生的貝貝被送回中國。

史密斯回憶，雄性大熊貓貝貝和小奇跡比它們的兄弟泰山“更外向”。

她說：“我與這些大熊貓相遇，我非常了解它們，我記得所有熊貓幼崽在這里降生的時刻。我們知道它們出生后，將前往中國，成為群體繁殖項目的一部分?！?/p>

“所以就像小寶寶一樣。當他們長大后，94 如果你想讓他們走出去并取得成功，就不能讓他們留在你身邊，因此我們的熊貓幼崽將前往中國，它們將繁育自己的幼崽，并幫助保護這個物種?！?/p>

史密斯說，與中國動物園工作人員的合作給她留下了深刻印象。

“我真的很喜歡與大熊貓一起工作?？梢耘c它們工作，并了解這個物種實在太棒了。但我最喜歡的不僅僅是與大熊貓一起工作，還有與中國同事共事。”

“與中國的科學家和其他相關(guān)人員合作，分享大熊貓棲息地、大熊貓文化等相關(guān)知識，對我來說真是一次不可思議的經(jīng)歷?！?/p>

新冠疫情為人員交流往來帶來了障礙。

史密斯說：“通常我們一年要去中國好幾次，中國同事們試著來美國探望我們。疫情防控期間，這很難，我們還不能見面，但還好我們?nèi)匀挥须娮余]件、視頻電話和其他溝通方式?！?/p>

“我認為這個項目一直都很棒。因為多年來我們一直保持著良好的關(guān)系，我們配合得很好?！?/p>

史密斯希望該項目“至少還能持續(xù)50年”。

在采訪史密斯的過程中，美香和小奇跡在熊貓館的一塊戶外場地上嬉戲，而添添則在另一邊悠閑地嚼著竹子，游客蜂擁而至圍觀它們。

3 歲的小女孩布魯克林告訴《中國日報》，她希望“更多的大熊貓媽媽和寶寶”來動物園。

62 歲的蘇女士正在享受一年一度的家庭假期，她剛剛在亞特蘭大動物園參觀了大熊貓，現(xiàn)在又來到華盛頓看大熊貓。