Smithsonian National Zoo Smithsonian National Zoo News 2023

[Great Argus]

For comparison and contrast, Komodo Dragon were once diplomatic gifts from Indonesia as well, and only held by Cincinnati and the National Zoo -- then the latter bred them, and now they have become common enough they have started showing up at some smaller, non-major facilities, and some major facilities have gone out of them with zero fanfare. The babies weren't required to go back to Indonesia and formed the backbone of a breeding program and captive population instead.

There's a large number of species that have been given as diplomatic gifts with no strings attached - as a proper gift should be. Sometimes it's enough to form a population, other times not. Many zoos started or were expanded on receiving diplomatic gifts of exotic animals; Jurong Bird Park's original collection was significantly comprised of diplomatic gifts iirc. As you note, Giant Pandas were originally in this category as well, but that has now turned into diplomatic loans. The overall difficulty in breeding pandas combined with their appeal was apparently an easy transition to charging for them. Now offspring of a loaned pair of animals are normally also considered as belonging to the owner of the adults - so China's panda loan is not out of the ordinary there given the terms. Yet nowadays there's numerous photos and videos online of Chinese facilities with over a dozen young pandas in a single frame, and breeding success to the point the Giant Panda was actually downgraded in threat status by both China's authorities and the IUCN. Yet China stands by the loan program and limits pandas outside China, fully controlling every panda and keeping 24 hour tabs on all of them.
Now it's certainly fair to make sure your diplomatic animals are going to reputable facilities that will care for them appropriately, but is a million dollar loan and 24 hour surveillance really necessary? Ultimately however, maintaining control of all offspring ensures that there never will be any possibility of challenges to the exclusive agreement. Nobody else has any pandas to offer, you take the loan or leave it. Personally, I'd rather see zoos shunt panda money to working with actual diplomatically gifted species or threatened species, instead of continuing to dump money into lazy bamboo bears. National remains committed however, which is not particularly unsurprising given politics - but I hope San Diego and Atlanta will consider putting their money elsewhere. Memphis seems uninterested after the PR hassle leading up to the departure of theirs, which is very likely in their best interest for now.

 

[RatioTile]

What is the Australian deal under which quokkas were sent to Saitama and Stuttgart? When I went to Saitama the staff said the quokkas were still property of Australia and when they arrived, a diplomat from Western Australia did a ceremony at the zoo in commemoration.

 

[Cat-Man]

Indeed a very complex political issue. I was wondering so if US Zoo's having to pay a million per year to rent panda's. Will China reimburse the National Zoo for the one month taking back pandas a month earlier? If not why not? And maybe a stretch but why aren't there recalling: chinese alligators, lesser pandas!, Mangahan Pit Viper. Shoot what's stopping them? An hey! while were at it maybe they could call for returning: SNOW LEOPARDS! I'm just saying.

The situation regarding panda ownership has been covered extensively, on this forum and parts of the internet. The Chinese state specifically owns these Giant Pandas; it does not own snow leopards, chinese alligators or red pandas.

Giant Pandas have leverage. Chinese Alligators and Mangshan Pit Vipers are unfortunately not a must see for the general public and have easy replacements in the American Alligator, and several other pit viper species. Snow Leopards and Red Pandas are popular, however can also be found in other countries like Nepal and India. There are no other animals like the Giant Panda where they are 1. Incredibly Popular, 2. Very Unique, and 3. Only found in one country on earth.

Although pandas do have significantly more leverage due to their popularity with the public, that is less relevant than the ownership. They are explicitly owned by the Chinese state.

Koalas seem to fit those 3 rules, too.

They do, although the management of the programme is different. The magority of koalas outside of Australia is done by the San Diego Zoo. There are a few exceptions (Longleat, and I believe Los Angeles), but I'm not sure how the actual ownership structure works, but I imagine they are owned by San Diego (although I will defer to anybody else who knows more about the specifics). In any case, these issues aren't finding their way past the desk of Antony Albanese, as Australia is a democratic country.

So the Giant Panda, Snub-Nosed Monkey and Chinese Sturgeon are all in similar programs? That's interesting. I had previously read about snub-nosed monkeys being a similar case but didn't know how serious it was. Never knew about the sturgeon! I wonder if there are others?

I think another important factor to stress why this situation is unique is also that the loan includes not only the pandas but also all of their potential children. I don't know if this would apply to the monkeys or sturgeon but in general, I don't think this applies in such a definitive way to any other animal. Yes, animals are sometimes returned to their native range for breeding purposes and a few programs do not involved breeding here (ie Tasmanian Devils) but it's still a pretty unique circumstance.

For comparison and contrast, Komodo Dragon were once diplomatic gifts from Indonesia as well, and only held by Cincinnati and the National Zoo -- then the latter bred them, and now they have become common enough they have started showing up at some smaller, non-major facilities, and some major facilities have gone out of them with zero fanfare. The babies weren't required to go back to Indonesia and formed the backbone of a breeding program and captive population instead.

We would be in a very different situation if Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing had reproduced, or any of the earlier attempts to hold pandas, as none of those were held to the current program rules.

I think you've proven your own point without realising it. The Komodo Dragons were gifts, and as such ownership was transferred. This is not the case with Pandas obtained through the lease system, where ownership is retained by China and offspring are contractually obliged to be returned by China within a predefined timeframe. Pandas gifted under panda diplomacy (and in the case of Chi-Chi, obtained through private dealers) in the 20th century were not. This is why Chapultepec Zoo has Xin-Xin, the sole Giant Panda outside of China (and possibly Taiwan, I am trying to ascertain details of their arrangement), not owned by the PRC.

 

[TinoPup]

Indeed a very complex political issue. I was wondering so if US Zoo's having to pay a million per year to rent panda's. Will China reimburse the National Zoo for the one month taking back pandas a month earlier? If not why not? And maybe a stretch but why aren't there recalling: chinese alligators, lesser pandas!, Mangahan Pit Viper. Shoot what's stopping them? An hey! while were at it maybe they could call for returning: SNOW LEOPARDS! I'm just saying.

They haven't publicly stated this, but I would assume they went back early because of potential weather issues. They had to fly north, to Alaska, and then over, to avoid Russian airspace. They needed to be sure they weren't going to hit any major weather issues that could cause a delay in the layover, especially, given the limited diets of the pandas. The longer they waited, the higher the risk went up for winter issues.

 

[E Maximus]

They haven't publicly stated this, but I would assume they went back early because of potential weather issues. They had to fly north, to Alaska, and then over, to avoid Russian airspace. They needed to be sure they weren't going to hit any major weather issues that could cause a delay in the layover, especially, given the limited diets of the pandas. The longer they waited, the higher the risk went up for winter issues.

It more than likely has to do with the potential government shutdown looming effective 11/17/2023. No telling how long those will last and if it carried over into December they wouldn't have been able to return and who knows how that would of played out.

 

[TinoPup]

It more than likely has to do with the potential government shutdown looming effective 11/17/2023. No telling how long those will last and if it carried over into December they wouldn't have been able to return and who knows how that would of played out.

That was likely a factor yes, but weather would be the main thing. It doesn't matter what the government is doing if the plane can't fly. Keepers still work during the shutdown.

 

[E Maximus]

That was likely a factor yes, but weather would be the main thing. It doesn't matter what the government is doing if the plane can't fly. Keepers still work during the shutdown.

Keepers do work, however they do not get paid till after the shutdown ends. The zoo essentially freezes everything except the necessities for animal care unless they have an excess in their budget to rollover. If the continuing resolution congress passed had funded the government through the end of the year or later I can assure you they would of stayed through December.

 

[Nile Hippo Expert]

Keepers do work, however they do not get paid till after the shutdown ends. The zoo essentially freezes everything except the necessities for animal care unless they have an excess in their budget to rollover. If the continuing resolution congress passed had funded the government through the end of the year or later I can assure you they would of stayed through December.

I have to agree with @TinoPup here on this reason about the weather. If the weather gets too extreme, the zoo might not be able to get some specific types of bamboo from other countries, and can cause the animals to starve right before they leave.

 

[E Maximus]

I have to agree with @TinoPup here on this reason about the weather. If the weather gets too extreme, the zoo might not be able to get some specific types of bamboo from other countries, and can cause the animals to starve right before they leave.

They do not import bamboo, the zoo grows their own bamboo on site as well as cuts from local properties in the area
.

 

[Nile Hippo Expert]

They do not import bamboo, the zoo grows their own bamboo on site as well as cuts from local properties in the area
.

Some zoos that have (or had) pandas do import bamboo (or used to). For the Toronto and Calgary Zoos as bamboo does not grow in Canada, and the only reason they left early was because the pandemic denied access to get bamboo from other countries.

 

[TinoPup]

I have to agree with @TinoPup here on this reason about the weather. If the weather gets too extreme, the zoo might not be able to get some specific types of bamboo from other countries, and can cause the animals to starve right before they leave.

This isn't what I was saying. As @NOVAElephantEnthusiast said, they grow their own. But they can only fit so much on a plane, and pandas eat so much every day.

 

[Cat-Man]

Some zoos that have (or had) pandas do import bamboo (or used to). For the Toronto and Calgary Zoos as bamboo does not grow in Canada, and the only reason they left early was because the pandemic denied access to get bamboo from other countries.

The Smithsonian National Zoo is not Toronto or Calgary

 

[Andrew_NZP]

The zoo officially announced the arrival of Vicki, their new sloth bear.

Introducing Vicki, Asia Trail’s Newest Bachelorette

 

[TinoPup]

Pandas will be returning to the USA, likely Smithsonian and San Diego, per China's president Xi Jinping during his meeting with US President Joe Biden. More pandas will be coming to the US, China's president signals

 

[Cat-Man]

Just to copy what I have said on another thread:

Although I admire your optimism, at the same time this is a naïve reading of the situation when you look at Chinese diplomatic history. Xi can and will say what he likes to generate positive press coverage. Pandas will not be coming back to the United States anytime soon, and that article is full of assumptions taken at face value. It also states 'probably San Diego' providing no evidence that there is anything in the pipeline.

 

[TinoPup]

Although I admire your optimism, at the same time this is a naïve reading of the situation when you look at Chinese diplomatic history. Xi can and will say what he likes to generate positive press coverage. Pandas will not be coming back to the United States anytime soon, and that article is full of assumptions taken at face value. It also states 'probably San Diego' providing no evidence that there is anything in the pipeline.

Every news outlet is reporting that he said pandas will be coming back. Pandas are a relatively small, cheap thing he can do to create a lot of goodwill, something he desperately wants to do. There's no reason for him to not mean what he says here. I am a little uncertain about San Diego - do they even want more pandas? I haven't followed that one - but certainly Smithsonian. Which yes, would be in several years given the upgrades they're planning for the exhibit, and could possibly not happen based on any changes in administration in that time period.

 

[Cat-Man]

Every news outlet is reporting that he said pandas will be coming back. Pandas are a relatively small, cheap thing he can do to create a lot of goodwill, something he desperately wants to do. There's no reason for him to not mean what he says here. I am a little uncertain about San Diego - do they even want more pandas? I haven't followed that one - but certainly Smithsonian. Which yes, would be in several years given the upgrades they're planning for the exhibit, and could possibly not happen based on any changes in administration in that time period.

According to the article linked, he did not say that. He said " He added that he learned the San Diego Zoo and people in California “very much look forward to welcoming pandas back.” ", which does not confirm they will be returning, much less suggest when it is happening. Saying he 'wants to create goodwill' may also be another way of telling people what they want to hear. Has anything substantially changed in the US - China relationship since negotiations to extend the lease of the existing pandas proved fruitless?

 

[JVM]

Whether or not what Xi says bears out to be accurate in the future, the fact he said it at all is still newsworthy and worth reporting. It will definitely affect how zoos with an interest in these animals behave. I didn't really think it would be mentioned at all, truthfully.

 

[GeeZee]

Whether or not what Xi says bears out to be accurate in the future, the fact he said it at all is still newsworthy and worth reporting. It will definitely affect how zoos with an interest in these animals behave. I didn't really think it would be mentioned at all, truthfully.

Same here, this is quite a pleasant suprise. Perhaps all is not lost afterall. It’s in both nations interests to keep up with this program.

 

[Smaggledagle]

Other 2023 News:

On May 9th, it was announced that the zoo transferred a (1.0) striped skunk named Sundew to the Northwest Trek Wildlife Park in Washington.

Sundew Arrives at Northwest Trek - Northwest Trek

On August 7th, it was announced that the zoo transferred a (1.0) lesser kudu named Zahi to The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, Maryland.

Say hello to Zahi, a young... - The Maryland Zoo in Baltimore

On August 11th, it was announced that the institute transferred a (0.0.1) red panda named Miso to the Greensboro Science Center in North Carolina.

Introducing Miso! We are... - Greensboro Science Center

On August 16th, it was announced that the zoo transferred another (1.0) lesser kudu named Machi to the Denver Zoo in Colorado a few months prior.

Denver Zoo - Meet Machi, the newest addition to our...

On September 12th, it was announced that the zoo acquired a (1.0) California sea lion named Nick from the Denver Zoo in Colorado temporarily in late September.

Denver Zoo - We are temporarily saying goodbye to our...

On September 16th, it was announced that the zoo transferred (0.0.14) Australian snake-necked turtles, (3.0) common spider tortoises, (0.3) Chinese three-striped box turtles, (1.1) Asian pond turtles, and a (0.1) matamata turtle to Iguanaland in Florida in September.

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The zoo announced the hatching of 7 orchard oriole chicks—the first of their species to hatch in human care—and 3 Baltimore oriole chicks.

Egg-citing News: Bird House Welcomes Oriole Chicks

On October 27th, the zoo announced the orchard orioles' names, Charm, Chessie, Crabcak, Francis, Harriet, Thurgood, and Zappa. The zoo also announced the Baltimore orioles' names, Adam Jones, Brooks Robinson, and Cal Ripken Jr.

With thousands of votes cast, our orchard oriole chicks have names meet Crabcake, Chessie, Charm, Harriet, Francis, Zappa and Thurgood! Thanks to everyone who helped us name these important chicks, including Maryland Governor Wes Moore. . . . In choosing names for our three Baltimore oriole chicks, Governor Moore was inspired by Maryland’s own Major League Baseball team, the Baltimore Orioles! The first chick was named in honor of “Mr. Oriole” himself, former third baseman and Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson. The second chick’s moniker honors former shortstop and Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr. Governor Moore bestowed the name Adam Jones on the third chick, honoring the former outfielder and five-time MLB All-Star. . . . Learn more about all 10 chicks in this update from Sara Hallager, curator of Bird House! STORY:... - Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute