Two 3-year-old giant pandas have officially begun their journey from China to the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, DC, where they will live for the next decade.
Male Bao Li (pronounced "BOW-lee") and female Qing Bao (pronounced "ching-BOW") are the latest bears to be temporarily sent to the US capital under a 52-year-old conservation partnership with China (see history). The cubs will quarantine for at least 30 days before making their public debut. The Smithsonian will pay an estimated $1M annually for the cubs. The bears' arrival comes after last year's departure of two adult pandas, Tian Tian and Mei Xiang, and their son Xiao Qi Ji (pronounced "t-YEN t-YEN," "may-SHONG," and "SHIAU-chi-ji," respectively).
Prior to Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, the first giant pandas arrived in the US in 1972, when China donated a pair as a diplomatic gesture to commemorate then-President Richard Nixon's historic visit. In 1984, China began leasing, rather than gifting, its pandas to zoos. At least 60 pandas are currently leased to roughly 20 countries, including at the San Diego Zoo in the US.
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