Ping Ping and Fu Shuang depart Chengdu for 10-year stay at Zoo Atlanta
Giant pandas Ping Ping and Fu Shuang have left Chengdu for Zoo Atlanta, beginning a 10-year conservation stay in the United States.
Two giant pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, departed Chengdu early on Sunday for Zoo Atlanta, marking the start of a decade-long stay in the United States.
The pair left Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport in southwest China's Sichuan province at 2:55 a.m. aboard a chartered flight, following a farewell ceremony at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, where both were born.
The transfer is being carried out under a conservation agreement between Zoo Atlanta and the China Wildlife Conservation Association. It follows the recall of four giant pandas from Atlanta in 2024, which ended the zoo's previous loan arrangement with China.
Ping Ping, born in March 2020, is noted for large dark eye patches and a stocky build. Fu Shuang, born in October 2020, has a small tuft of fur on her head and a rounded forehead.
The pandas' move was highlighted as an outcome of renewed engagement between China and the United States during talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House. Speaking before the meeting, Xi said the pandas would reach Zoo Atlanta within days and described the transfer as a sign of friendship between the Chinese and American people.