pandas

The National Zoo will host a Panda Palooza celebration to bid farewell to the giant pandas. News4’s Tommy McFly talks with people at the zoo and tells what’s planned.

From Sept. 23 to Oct. 1 the National Zoo will host a farewell “Panda Palooza” before Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and 3-year-old Xiao Qi Ji head to China.

At the end of this year, all three of the pandas that currently call the National Zoo home are leaving.
Here’s what to know about the giant pandas and their departure from D.C.

Crowds celebrated Xiao Qi Ji’s third birthday at the Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute. But his third birthday party was bittersweet, because it’s the last birthday he’ll celebrate in D.C. before all three pandas return to China in December.

It was a bittersweet birthday for local fans of Mei Xiang, who is expected to soon return to China.

Mei Xiang celebrated her 25th birthday in style on Saturday, with a blue “fruitsicle cake.” It’s a bittersweet occasion for panda fans: The bears are set to leave the National Zoo this December.

If you need a baby animal fix this spring, the National Zoo has plenty of fluffy residents you can visit or watch online.

Smithsonian’s National Zoo Xiao Qi Ji celebrated his second birthday Sunday. News4’s Derrick Ward reports.

The National Zoo in Washington, D.C., is marking 50 years since the start of its giant panda conservation program.

The National Zoo is marking 50 years since the start of its giant panda conservation program. News4’s Eun Yang caught up with Brandie Smith, director of the zoo, who shared some updates and fun facts about some of D.C.’s favorite bears. NBC4’s Arun Raman contributed to this report.