It was a panda celebration at the National Zoo on Saturday as three of the giant pandas celebrated their birthdays, including the first birthday of Bei Bei.
As part of a traditional ceremony, symbolic objects were placed in front of a baby to foretell something about his or her future. For Bei Bei, three posters were painted with symbols representing longevity, good health and habitat, and friendship and luck.
Mei Xiang, Bei Bei’s mother, chose the red knot, indicating friendship and luck, for the youngster.
“To giant panda fans around the world, Bei Bei is our charismatic cub who has charmed visitors with his bold personality, laid-back temperament and playful behavior,” said Dennis Kelly, director of the National Zoo. “To our dedicated team of animal care staff and scientists, this bear represents more than four decades of conservation research and excellence in giant panda husbandry. Today, we celebrate that we have been able to share our panda story, from the science behind his conception to his first steps and beyond, and we look forward to what he will teach us in the future.”
Bei Bei, turning 1 year old on Aug. 22, Bao Bao, turning 3 years old on Aug. 23, and Tian Tian, turning 19 years old on Aug. 27, received tiered birthday cakes made by the Zoo’s nutrition department. The tiers are made of frozen diluted juice and were dyed various colors using beet juice, carrot juice, apple juice and food dye, decorated with flower appliques carved from apples, pears, carrots, cooked sweet potatoes, leaf-eater biscuits and arrow bamboo, topped the cakes with some honey.
Zoo guests enjoyed Dan Dan noodles, courtesy of the Chinese embassy. The cold noodles are a dish from Sichuan Province. The China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Wolong in Sichuan Province is where Mei Xiang and Tian Tian were born and where Bao Bao and Bei Bei will live when they move to China.
