Su Lin’s New Adventures
Posted at 12:05 pm February 7, 2007 by Kay Ferguson
Now that weaning has started, Su Lin has access to the right-hand exhibit at the Giant Panda Research Station. This has meant new trees to climb and explore. She has tested all of them and has found that they are very different from her favorite tree in the left-hand exhibit. One of the “new” trees is the large one at the back that is very high. Su Lin seems to like high places and, believe it or not, it is also her brother’s favorite tree.
All of us keepers at Lion Camp at the Wild Animal Park are happy to report that Izu and both his families are all thriving these days! Some of you may have noticed that for a few weeks we only had Izu, Oshana, Abena, and Bakari out on exhibit. This was due to the fact that one of Mina’s cubs needed some rest off exhibit.
We are now into our second phase of weaning, where Su Lin and Bai Yun are separated at night and then reunited during the day. At night, their activity is very much the same, with bouts of sleeping and resting all through the night. Sleeping spots can differ quite a bit. Su Lin utilizes several different trees, the climbing structure, and the top of the tree den all during the nights. Bai tends to spend some time on the rock cave but also likes to sleep behind it, out of camera view. From 5 p.m. on we can only set the camera on one view for the night. We usually choose Bai’s exhibit view because it covers the widest range, but there are still many areas out of view.
We have always known that one day the male cub born August 19, 2003, at the San Diego Zoo will travel far away to the homeland of China, although that won’t be for several more months. Looking back to the wonderful afternoon when he was born brings fond memories of his growth and his funny ways. Mei Sheng followed his mother, Bai Yun, everywhere. Their play times were filled with tumbles, rolls in the dirt, baths, and panda discipline from mom. 
When the keepers were finished, Mei Sheng headed off to his bedroom and his snacks, and we continued on through the facility for a tour. We got to peek through bedroom doors to see Mei Sheng and his dad, Gao Gao, off exhibit and eating their afternoon meals. We also got a good look at the video monitoring system and learned just how many cameras are scattered throughout the bear areas. Something that no one expected to see was Bai Yun’s birthing den (pictured)—it’s really a big, dark cylindrical space with doors on two sides and a couple of cameras built in. Because the space isn’t being used at the moment, we all got to poke our heads right inside to have a look–wow! Keeper Jessica explained how the small side door is used to remove babies for weighing and check-ups when Bai Yun steps out to eat. It will also be used to swap babies in and out if Bai Yun ever gives birth to twins, ensuring that both babies will receive maternal care.