"Sunshine" and "Tian Tian" are a giant panda "couple" living in the United Kingdom, and they are finally returning to their long-lost hometown, Chengdu, China. On December 4, local time, two giant pandas took a flight with China Southern Airlines and went home!
Sunshine and Tiantian, both 20, arrived at Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland in 2011 as part of a 10-year agreement between the Royal Scottish Zoological Society (RZSS) and the China Wildlife Conservation Society, which was later extended for two years.
As the only pair of giant pandas living in the UK, "Sunshine" and "Tian Tian" have received great attention from the local area, even on trips back home, and the British "Daily Mail" has also posted flight information in the hope of helping readers in need.
However, it is reported that the exact time when the two pandas left the zoo is kept secret to reduce the possibility of interference from well-wishers or ** groups. It is reported that there are many people who believe that Edinburgh Zoo should not let the two giant pandas leave, of course, this is something they cannot change, and the agreement is the agreement.
The journey is 8,046 kilometers and takes 13 hours, and of course there is no need to worry about the two pandas starving on the plane, their "in-flight meals" are still well prepared.
In addition, along with "Sunshine" and "Tiantian", there are also breeders and veterinarians of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, and Chinese breeders. It's just that they don't have the same high salary as giant pandas, because they don't have a crew member, so they have to microwave their own food to fill their stomachs.
"Sunshine" and "Sweet" are the signboards of Edinburgh Zoo, and their big ** is posted outside the wall, which is a must-visit "check-in point" when going to the zoo and even to Edinburgh.
A zookeeper posted footage taken with a "panda camera" after the two giant pandas left, and the place where the pandas once lived is now empty, for which some locals expressed "heartbreak" on social **.
Sad day, I wish you all a safe and enjoyable journey, and I will miss watching you eat bamboo through the webcam in the middle of the night," one netizen wrote.
In addition, some netizens told that they visited Edinburgh Zoo not long ago, had a "final farewell" with "Sunshine" and "Tiantian", and shed tears when they left the zoo.
"Sunshine" and "Tiantian" made the British people sentimental, and they regretted that in 12 years, this lovely "couple" did not give birth to the next generation, and as a female giant panda, "Tiantian" never got pregnant, even if it was changed from natural breeding to about 8 artificial inseminations, it could not be able to conceive a baby.
This is very disappointing. Baby pandas are beautiful, they are delicate and cute," David Field, chief executive of the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland, said in an interview about Tian Tian's failure to get pregnant. In Field's view, despite the best efforts of both experts and breeders, from "everything from the hormonal cycle to nesting to feeding," "sometimes animals just don't get along."
Genetically, they're obviously a perfect match, but behaviorally, if this were Tinder, a dating app commonly used in Europe and the United States, maybe Tiantian wouldn't choose to swipe right," Field joked. Apparently he wanted to say that "Tian Tian" didn't really like "Sunshine", even though the male panda was "very handsome" in the eyes of humans.
Giant pandas in the UK, Sunshine and Tiantian come home