Er Shun and Da Mao are here. The two Giant Pandas arrived in Toronto from the world’s Panda Capital, Chengdu, China, at 10.46 this morning There was a fitting ceremony with speeches by Prime Minister Harper and the Chinese ambassador to Canada to mark the much anticipated visit. The panda pair, who have never really lived together, will spend five years at the Toronto Zoo and five years in the Calgary Zoo. It is hoped they will produce one or more cubs. They have been kept apart and therefore there are no pictures of them together. The shots above show the arrival of the FedEx Panda Express this morning and a flashback shot to China last year as Laureen Harper tries to keep control of a wiggly panda cub. Across the city, there was predictable excitement. “Feeling like a kid again with the arrival of the pandas,” one person tweeted. “I was 25 when our last set came to Toronto. Happy days are here again.” As part of the show upon arrival, Mr. Harper was required to sign (electronically) for “proof of delivery” just as he would have done for any other shipment. Customs officers came out to the tarmac to process them. The pandas will now spend about a month getting used to Canada — and to each other — before they meet the public at Toronto Zoo. Er Shun is the female. Her name apparently means “Smooth” which may be better rendered in English as “Smoothie.” She and Da Mao are said to be young (6 and 5 respectively) and highly suitable for parenthood. The mating cycle is brief however and may have passed for this season. Thus it may be next year if there is to be a pregnancy. Er Shun and Da Mao arrive safely in Toronto
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Er Shun and Da Mao are here. The two Giant Pandas arrived in Toronto from the world’s Panda Capital, Chengdu, China, at 10.46 this morning There was a fitting ceremony with speeches by Prime Minister Harper and the Chinese ambassador to Canada to mark the much anticipated visit. The panda pair, who have never really lived together, will spend five years at the Toronto Zoo and five years in the Calgary Zoo. It is hoped they will produce one or more cubs. They have been kept apart and therefore there are no pictures of them together. The shots above show the arrival of the FedEx Panda Express this morning and a flashback shot to China last year as Laureen Harper tries to keep control of a wiggly panda cub. Across the city, there was predictable excitement. “Feeling like a kid again with the arrival of the pandas,” one person tweeted. “I was 25 when our last set came to Toronto. Happy days are here again.” As part of the show upon arrival, Mr. Harper was required to sign (electronically) for “proof of delivery” just as he would have done for any other shipment. Customs officers came out to the tarmac to process them. The pandas will now spend about a month getting used to Canada — and to each other — before they meet the public at Toronto Zoo. Er Shun is the female. Her name apparently means “Smooth” which may be better rendered in English as “Smoothie.” She and Da Mao are said to be young (6 and 5 respectively) and highly suitable for parenthood. The mating cycle is brief however and may have passed for this season. Thus it may be next year if there is to be a pregnancy. 