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Published: October 9th 2016
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This week took us to the Houston Zoo to meet brother and sister Take' and Li Ming. Take' has been at the zoo for a while longer than his sister, but doesn't seem to mind her moving in. While at the zoo, we had the opportunity to meet two of the keepers who work with the red pandas, Priscilla and Paul, and one of the supervisors of the Natural Encounters Department, Kamryn. They took us behind the scenes just before feeding time so that was an added bonus as well! While visiting with Take' and Li Ming, we learned a little about the pair and their lives at the Houston Zoo.
In case you missed it, Houston is in Texas which means it gets hot. No, let me clarify. It gets HOT and HUMID. Not the most forgiving of climates for a red panda to be sure. The Zoo has a solution, however. The red pandas get to live in a climate controlled building. This is really the only way to go when it comes to fuzzballs like the red panda living in Texas. The exhibit itself is very large, one of the roomiest I've seen in my travels thus
far, and the public has a great viewing area to see the pair up close. The pandas were very active when we arrived in the afternoon, something most of you may have realized is a special treat to get to see as red pandas seem to spend so much of the day napping. Both Li Ming and Take' were walking the length of the exhibit, pausing only long enough to scent mark and then resuming their exercise. Take' wore himself out first, climbing onto a high branch to stretch out and hang his legs and tail down for a short break. When it was time to go behind the scenes, both pandas were allowed into the back in separate holding areas. While on exhibit, the two live together, but feeding is a little tricky because, according to the keepers, Li Ming is very food-motivated. They wouldn't say she is aggressive, just much more active than her brother and Take' seems to be more accommodating in general. In order to keep things fair, the zoo has decided feeding them separately is the way to go.
Take' had a lunch of apples and, his favorite, bananas. He is the first red
panda I've met who didn't hold grapes in the highest esteem. Apparently his digestive system didn't care too much for grapes so they switched it up and discovered bananas are his favorite treat. He's a smart panda too, as is evidenced by his realization that he only gets those pieces of banana if he finishes all of his apples first. He's a sweet panda who the zoo has had success training in a number of ways, including taking short walks in a harness.
Li Ming was fed on exhibit and drew a crowd of people to observe the beautiful panda happily munching. I heard a number of people commenting on how she grabbed the food and wondering if red pandas have thumbs. My five year old explained to one such observer that red pandas have a special bone that is sort of like a thumb, haha. I guess he's soaking in a lot on this Pilgrimage.
As I continue the Pilgrimage, I am gathering lots of information and one thing that was brought home on this leg of the trip is that zoos are becoming so much more inclusive and communicative with both the public and other zoos.
The whole culture of zoos in the United States has definitely changed in my lifetime, but it seems so much different now than it did even just ten years ago. The Houston keepers told me they feel like they have a good network of people to reach out to with questions about husbandry of all their animals. The AZA seems to be good at connecting zoos under their umbrella, but it is still reassuring to hear firsthand that relationships between zoos are building and blossoming to the benefit of their animal collections.
As always, I am beyond grateful to get to spend my free time visiting zoos and talking to people with a passion for caring for animals. Thank you all for following me on this Pilgrimage!
Up next: We're heading to the west coast in three weeks, where we will be visiting SEVEN zoos! Stay tuned!
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Pia Edborg
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Take & Li Ming
Hello again! Just wondering if they mentioned why Li Ming was transferred there to live with her brother instead of finding a mate for her? And will they be separated in December when breeding time starts so they don't inbreed? Also, did they mention what happened to the female they previously had there, Keti?. She's no longer listed in the studbook, which leads me to believe that she might have passed away, but she was still young (same age as Take), so I'm still holding out hope that it isn't so. Anyway, can't wait to hear about your west coast zoo visits next!