Giant Pandas Coming To Scotland!

How wonderful. Would love to see them.

I plan to be doing that very thing come Spring

How lovely, Bonny.

http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/287670/Here-come-the-bears-

HERE COME THE BEARS...



Giant pandas Tian Tian and Yang Guang, inset, munch on bamboo shoots in their Chinese home

Sunday December 4,2011
By Greg Christison
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GIANT pandas Tian Tian and Yang Guang were on their way to Britain last night, as it emerged Princess Anne played a key role in securing the deal.
The endangered animals, whose names translate as Sweetie and Sunlight, were loaded into perspex containers following a ceremony to mark their departure from China. They will be the first giant pandas in the UK for 17 years.
The eight-year-olds were given a police escort yesterday on the 45-minute drive to Chengdu Airport from the panda breeding centre in Sichuan Province.
They are expected to arrive at Edinburgh Zoo at 1.30pm today, after an 11-hour flight, with hundreds of well-wishers set to welcome them.
First Minister Alex Salmond, in China, said: “As panda-mania hits Scotland, and we extend a warm Scottish welcome to Tian Tian and Yang Guang, I am delighted to have the opportunity to personally thank the Chinese government.”
Darren McGarry, head of animals at Edinburgh Zoo, said the pandas’ arrival marked the culmination of a five-year effort to bring them to the UK.

He added: “I’m really excited. I know that my colleagues here are excited, we’re really looking forward to the pandas arriving.” Zoo officials yesterday revealed they had enlisted royal help to secure the “rock star” animals.
During the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Princess Royal made it known that the royal family was “very interested” in the proposed deal, which finally convinced the Chinese to go ahead. Meanwhile, the animals’ “nanny”, Xie Hao, on the “Panda Express” flight, said: “I’ve looked after them since they were little so it will be painful being separated.
“Sweetie is more sensitive, more of an introvert because she’s a girl. But Sunlight is braver so he may find it easier to adapt.” The loan deal with the Chinese will cost the zoo more than £600,000 a year, plus £70,000 for imported bamboo.

The pandas will be unveiled to the public on December 16.

And the pandas have touched down safely in Edinburgh!

Excellent. Sweet pandas indeed.

Yes, it is marvellous that they have been pulled back from the brink of extinction, and I am sure they will be happy in their new homes.

I am looking forward to seeing them in the spring - I never thought that would be possible - and I see there will be hidden pandacams online...

http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16123281

Two giant pandas being loaned to Edinburgh Zoo from China have arrived in Scotland after flying on a specially-fitted private plane.

There were cheers and bagpipes were played to welcome Sunshine and Sweetie as their aircraft approached the runway following an 11-hour journey.
They were then taken off the jet one by one in crates ahead of a trip by road to the zoo.
The seven year olds had been given a breakfast of carrots and protein cake before passing through customs in China.
Their individual crates, each labelled "one panda", were then loaded on to the Boeing 777, with a panda face on the sides, that transported them to Edinburgh Airport.
On board, Sunshine and Sweetie, who are being loaned to the zoo by the Chinese government, enjoyed an in-flight meal of bamboo. Adult pandas eat around 4kg of the plant a day.



Sunshine the Panda is taken off the plane at Edinburgh Airport

"Pandas can feel quite stressed when they're in the air," said Dr Tang Chunxiang, a vet from China's Giant Panda Research Base who accompanied the pair during the flight.
"To calm them down I'll talk to them. I'll say 'don't worry, I'm here with you'".
Sunshine and Sweetie were flown by a team of four pilots, all of whom donned kilts in honour of the journey from Chengdu in western China, to Scotland.
"These are precious animals," said the head of the flight crew Captain Paul E. Cassell.
"They'll be looked after like first class passengers."

The pandas' departure from China is the culmination of five years of campaigning by both the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland and the British Government.
The panda loan will cost the zoo £600,000 a year.
Online footage of the two animals, from four hidden "panda-cams" in their enclosures, is expected to attract visitors from around the world.
Zoo bosses are hopeful the pandas will one day give birth to cubs.

FedEx. What an Advert.

Yes, it was pretty spectacular...

How incredibly lovely. I was thinking about them last night when they had taken off from China.

I bet they will be happy to get settled into their new home.

I saw a clip of them leaving China, Lily, and - apart from the signs being in Chinese - the weather looked as damp as it is here, so I should think the climate will suit them.

And anyone who has been to Edinburgh Zoo recently knows it's worlds away from the old 'zoo' idea - an earlier story about their new home:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-13579326

Edinburgh Zoo panda enclosure to have nursery for cubs



Tian Tian and Yang Guang will live in separate enclosures because pandas are solitary creatures


It has emerged the new panda enclosure at Edinburgh Zoo is being built with panda cubs in mind.

Two pandas, Tian Tian and Yuang Guang, are due to arrive from China later this year.

About £250,000 is being spent creating a perfect home for the pair. It will have pools, caves, climbing structures and even its own nursery.

Both pandas have successfully bred before and it is hoped they could produce further offspring.

It is expected the pandas will generate huge public interest and the new enclosure has been designed to accommodate 600 spectators per hour.

The zoo's facilities manager, Marty Hall, said: "We have a large expanse of glass to give views into the panda nursery, which is what people want to see."


The glass walkway will allow people to see into the panda nursery
He said the rest of the enclosure was also designed to be friendly to young cubs so they do not hurt themselves if they fall.

Each panda will have its own space because they are solitary animals in the wild and only come together to breed.

The enclosure is due to be completed in July and will have to be inspected and approved by experts from China.



The glass walkway will allow people to see into the panda nursery

The animals spend much of their time eating bamboo, and the zoo expects it will cost about £6,000 a month to keep them.

It is hoped the cost will fall if the zoo manages to grow its own bamboo supply in the future.

This is also on the BBC site. There is a lovely video of the pandas. What cuties.....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-edinburgh-east-fife-16023328

Yang Guang settles into his new enclosure at Edinburgh Zoo

Oh, that's a brilliant pic, and a very good sign - I thought it might have taken longer for them to settle down.

He looks totally thrilled to be there, doesn't he? Just like a guy, he's got his favorite food......

It's amazing, he looks as if he's been there all his life - I should think the pilots, Chinese specialists, truck drivers, etc., who had to get this unique cargo from China to Edinburgh feel worse

So true, Bonny.


Forgot to ask if it is snowing in Edinburgh? It was nice to read that the 4 flight crew members wore kilts for the journey over so was wondering if their knees would be cold..........

I visited the Schönbrunn Zoo while I was in Vienna recently, they have 2 pandas there. Deadly cold so they were inside, fast asleep. Even so, they were the center of attraction. LL

lily wrote: So true, Bonny.


Forgot to ask if it is snowing in Edinburgh? It was nice to read that the 4 flight crew members wore kilts for the journey over so was wondering if their knees would be cold..........

It's pretty cold, with snow sort of blowing through, but no actual snowfall yet...

They do seem to sleep a lot when nothing much is happening, don't they, LL? I suppose that a nice, cosey, panda-friendly enclosure with humans tending their every need is a vast improvement on panda life in the wild....

Bloody FED EX cannot get my parcel to me...but can deliver bloody Pandas on time

Was reading about the weather conditions last night, Bonny, after reading about the pandas. Sure hope you guys stay warm and safe on the roads.

Never mind mf, it will get to you.....

Here's a first - the pandas now have their own tartan...



http://www.edinburghzoo.org.uk/news-and-events/news/articles/News_189.html

Edinburgh Zoo has commissioned a special tartan to welcome our two giant pandas to Scotland.

Working closely with renowned designers Kinloch Anderson, the tartan has been approved by the Scottish Register of Tartans and reflects the huge cultural significance of Tian Tian and Yang Guang’s future arrival on Scottish shores.

Taking in elements of the Gillespie Tartan, in a nod to Thomas Gillespie who established the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland in 1909, the main colours of the tartan are black and white to represent the giant panda. Grey conveys the graduation of colour from black to white, as seen on a panda’s fur, and then green depicts the panda’s favourite food - bamboo. Red overchecks in blocks of three symbolise China, good luck and birth.

Traditional, beloved and intrinsic to Scotland, the tartan symbolically entwines the coming together of the Scottish and Chinese cultures, and is a perfect commemoration to mark the gift of two giant pandas to Scotland.

http://news.sky.com/home/uk-news/article/16131578

The pandas made their public debut - some smashing pics on the Sky site.