On Tuesday giant pandas Xing Ya and Wu Wen celebrated their 4th birthday in the Ouwehands zoo in Rhenen. To celebrate, the zoo gave each of them a giant birthday 'cake'.
Xing Ya's cake consisted of frozen water, beetroot juice, carrots and apples. The top layer was decorated with four candles made from bamboo and carrots. Wu Wen's cake was made from carrot juice and fruit. Both pandas seemed to enjoy their cakes, both in taste and as a new toy to play with.
After seven weeks in quarantine, giant pandas Wu Wen and Xing Ya will make their first public appearance at the Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen this afternoon. "We have been waiting for this moment for a long time", zoo director Robin de Lange said to RTV Utrecht. "You can imagine that if you wait for something so long, then your are very happy that it's finally happening today."
Two Giant Pandas that recently arrived in the Netherlands are doing well and enjoying their new home at the Ouwehands Zoo, the zoo said on Friday. A new video released by the Rhenen, Utrecht zoo shows Xing Ya relaxing on his back and enjoying a bamboo snack in his new habitat.
His panda partner, Wu Wen, did not make an appearance. The bamboo was grown in the Netherlands, and is part of the 30 kilos of bamboo the two will eat every day.
While panda enthusiasts across the Netherlands celebrated the arrival of pandas Wu Wen and Xing Ya on Wednesday, Amnesty International posted a video on social media reminding people not to let the pandas make them forget about all the human rights violations in China.
Chinese giant pandas Wu Wen and Xing Ya arrived safely in the Netherlands. After traveling nearly 8 thousand kilometers from Chengdu in China, they arrived at their new home in Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen just before midnight on Wednesday, NOS reports.
The two pandas are on loan from China. They will be living in Ouwehands Zoo for the next 15 years.
Giant Pandas Wu Wen and Xing Ya are aboard KLM flight KL0892 and en route from Chengdu in China to Schiphol Airport. They are expected to arrive at the Amsterdam airport just after 7:00 p.m., Het Parool reports.
After their arrival, the pandas will be transferred to an animal hotel at the airport, which is run by KLM. There they will be received by the Chinese ambassador to the Netherlands and 40 children. A selected group will be able to catch a quick glimpse of the pandas.
Pandas Wu Wen and Xing Ya are very nearly on their way to the Netherlands. On Tuesday China said goodbye to the pandas in a special ceremony. And on Wednesday the two giant pandas will fly to the Netherlands and their new home in Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen on a KLM flight.
During the farewell ceremony the pandas were offered a Schengen visa and each got a bamboo bicycle, as a nod to the Dutch culture, NOS reports.
The Netherlands is getting two pandas from China, and without the annual one million dollar fee. The black and white bears will soon be accommodated by the Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen. According to Minister Bert Koenders of Foreign Affairs, this is "a sign of the special relationship between China and the Netherlands".
One of the polar bear triplets that were born in Ouwehands Zoo on November 22nd, has died. Using images from the nursery, the zookeepers have determined that only two of the cubs are still alive.
Three polar bear cubs were born in the Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen on Saturday, November 22nd.
