We took the short drive up the road from the main center at Wolong to the quarantine facility. It was very cold, in the 30’s, but I didn’t notice. Mei Sheng was here! He had to be isolated from others, both human and panda alike, to ensure that he is healthy before being released into their panda population. Not to worry, he did have company; his new keeper Mr. Xie, or Scott as we know him, was with him 24/7.

Scott escorted us across the bridge to the facility. I was so excited I barely noticed the swaying bridge and raging river below us. Upon arrival, Mei Sheng was resting outside. I called to him and he perked up and looked somewhat confused. He slowly made his way over to us. Being used to just Scott there at the facility, he was very curious about the four others in our party. After he was finished investigating the others, he came over to me and presented his back for the longest back scratch ever. I even got some belly rubs in between the rolls and somersaults. Yes, he remembered.

Over the next few days, I worked with Mei Sheng and Scott. Just like he did at the San Diego Zoo, Mei Sheng welcomed me daily with early morning bleats. He also very much enjoyed the six feedings he received each day. Scott and I did daily training sessions as well. Mei Sheng remembered all of the behaviors he learned while at the Zoo, except for one that he was rusty on, but this was within reason. Scott had been modifying his blood-draw behavior to accommodate their blood-draw sleeve. Instead of grabbing the blood-draw sleeve handle perpendicularly with his forepaw, he now had to grab horizontally and “underhand.” No problem for Mei Sheng!

On our second day together, Scott informed me we would do a blood draw, the first draw since he has been at Wolong. Without a hitch, with Scott as trainer, Mei Sheng sat patiently, eating apples while the vet collected blood. Good boy! Another change I noticed was that Mei Sheng always kept a very close eye on what Scott was doing. I realized then that the torch had been passed, a bond and trust had developed; Mei Sheng has a new keeper, and a very good one at that.

In between feeding sessions, training, and cleaning, much playing and back scratching took place over those few days. It was so great to see my panda friend and to make a new one. Being at the center and meeting Scott and the other staff at Wolong really has put my mind at ease. Mei Sheng is in good hands and in an incredibly beautiful environment, his natural home.

As most of my time was spent up at the quarantine facility, I didn’t have the opportunity to spend much time at Wolong’s main center. However, when I first arrived and toured the center I came across a large female panda, resting peacefully on a log, foot swaying gently, while one of her cubs rested close by. Even though I had only seen Hua Mei when she was a youngster, before I became an employee of the Zoo, I knew immediately it was she! The resemblance to Bai Yun is amazing; Hua Mei is a beautiful bear.

Just as much as I was looking forward to my reunion with Mei Sheng, I was also dreading another goodbye. The day had come too quickly. Scott saved the last feeding for me. I did what was probably my last training session with Mei Sheng, who was great as always, and gave a quick scratch and made a hasty exit. We crossed that raging river once again. Through my tears, I thanked Scott for everything and told him that I was happy he was Mei Sheng’s new keeper. He put his hand on my shoulder and reassured me that he will take good care of ‘our’ boy.

The other day, Scott e-mailed me to say Mei Sheng completed his quarantine and returned to the main center on December 12. He reports that Mei Sheng is very comfortable in his new exhibit, which is very similar to ours here at the Zoo. I am sure he is charming the Wolong visitors as I write.

Thanks to my wonderful colleagues, my new friends at Wolong. I am extremely honored to work with such lovely creatures, and to know that the work I do everyday is a global effort to save a species.

Angie Fiore is a keeper at the San Diego Zoo.

Usually by 7:30 in the morning they are above ground and come running when called. Last week there seemed to be someone missing. I checked again at 9 a.m. and still saw only seven out of the eight meerkats. I cleaned the exhibit as normal and was starting to get a little worried. No one ever misses out on meatball and mealworm time! Since this exhibit is open-air, there is always a slight possibility that a hawk or owl coming by and snatching one up. But I was doubtful because this group is vigilant in their sentry duty. The other possibility was that one of them was sick and underground. There are so many holes it would be impossible to find.

My first task was to identify who was missing. I knew all of the adults were out and about, so it was a juvenile. All of our animals have a microchip so I was able to determine that it was one of the young females by process of elimination. I asked my fellow keepers to count them all every time they passed the exhibit. No luck. I must have counted 7 meerkats 30 times that day!

Finally, I was sitting in the exhibit at 2 p.m. hoping that mealworms would coax the missing little girl out. I started to hear the meerkats make a high-pitched squeaking sound and out of one of the holes crawled the little female. Her eyes were all crusty, her chin was dirty and scabbed, and she was hunched up like she had a bellyache. All of the adults piled on top of her to greet her and, it seemed, to warm her up. She allowed me to pick her up, which is never an option without thick gloves. I looked her over and felt for any obvious wounds.

Everyone was so excited to see her, and the behavior was very interesting. I brought her in back and placed her under the heat lamp to warm up. She drank some water immediately and had a couple of pieces of food. It was obvious she had been alone and cold all day underground. Since then she has been more isolated from the group and hanging with Seronga, our least dominant adult female, but she is doing well now and her chin is healing.

Laura Weiner is a keeper at the San Diego Zoo. Read her previous blog, Meerkat Pups Arrive.

Things were going so well, the decision was made to allow all the cubs and their moms to be together. In the wild, lion cubs are introduced to the pride at around six weeks, so the timing was right. After some discussion, we decided the best option would be to just open up the dividing mesh and let it happen as nature intended. This was a first for us: we have never had two litters this close in age before. In preparation, each cub received a haircut: small shaved patches on various parts of their bodies that allow us to quickly identify who is who.

When the big day arrived, December 19, we were all a bit nervous, although expecting things to turn out well. As planned, the divider door was opened with no fanfare…and soon everybody was together! The cubs behaved as if they had always been one pride and extremely vigorous play began immediately! Mina and Oshana greeted each other with friendly vocalizations and set off to check out each other’s cubs and dens. One by one, the cubs were pinned down by big lion paws and inspected, with much talking from all parties (the cubs mostly squalled and complained when their play was interrupted). As time progressed, we were all grateful for the identifying marks on the cubs - in the big balls of tumbling fur, it would have been next to impossible to tell them apart!

The group was together for a few hours, and then were separated for the rest of the day. Things had gone beautifully, but with all the excitement, Mina and Oshana had not let the cubs nurse. As soon as everyone was in their respective rooms, the exhausted cubs had a long nursing bout and fell asleep almost immediately. Later, when they awoke, the first thing they did was run to the mesh door and look for their new friends.

The following day, the big event was repeated. This time, all the cubs took a couple of naps, all piled into one den or the other! We still saw no nursing, so we separated the group again after several hours. We anticipate that when Mina and Oshana relax a little more, nursing will occur as normal and the group can be together for longer periods. Of course, the next big question is…when to introduce dad Izu? We know he is a good and gentle father, from his behavior with his last litters. Maybe this intro will happen very soon.

What a rewarding experience! Events like this are what really make our jobs special. I will keep everyone updated about the pride’s progress, and will be sure to post photos when they are available for viewing. These are exciting times at Lion Camp!

Marcia Redding is a senior keeper at the Wild Animal Park.

Read Marcia’s previous blog, Mothering, Lion Style.

Bai Yun, though nonchalant, knew her baby was climbing. When Zhen first climbed up Bai Yun was already up in the structure. As Zhen neared the top, Bai Yun decided she was ready to climb down. Momma passed by her youngster on the way, and bumped her enough to send her unceremoniously tumbling to the ground. No matter. Zhen shook it off and began climbing again. This time, she clearly wasn’t trying to get near her mother, as Bai Yun was now happily ensconced on the ground enjoying bamboo. She just wanted up!

This is a natural tendency for a cub this age. In the wild, momma panda will frequently leave a cub of this age while she forages for bamboo. Cubs can’t keep up with momma’s quicker pace, so they remain behind. To protect themselves from dangers, the youngsters will quickly learn to climb high up in trees to make themselves a hard target for would-be predators. When momma returns as much as a day later, cub and dam are reunited for nursing and grooming bouts.

Do not be concerned about the occasional spills Zhen will take as she garners increasing climbing proficiency. She is bound to tumble from the trees now and then, especially over the next few weeks. Somehow the panda is built to take this kind of punishment. I have witnessed young bears in Wolong fall pell-mell from a tall pine tree, approaching 40 feet above ground, and still get up and run off unharmed. Zhen will be okay despite these little life lessons.

Even so, the keepers have worked hard to prepare her area for her increased safety. The ground below trees and climbing structures has been cleared of any protruding sticks or obstacles she might fall upon. Climbing platforms have been installed in a few places to help her hang on with more success. Just this morning a small hammock-like structure was installed on the climbing structure in the hopes of enticing her into a cozy and easy-to-maintain resting spot. And staff eyes are frequently checking on her to ensure that she is doing fine.

Zhen has impressed everybody here with her bold attitude and easy going temperament. Keepers tell me she has taken to stalking them in the morning, ready to attack their boots with a flying leap from a door frame or low branch. This little bear is anxious to demonstrate that she has graduated from the denned-up baby of the past few months to a bear with a mind of her own. She’s getting to be a big girl, and we celebrate her climbing achievements as evidence of her health and well-being. Go get ‘em, Zhen!

Happy holidays, everyone!

Suzanne Hall is a senior research technician with the San Diego Zoo’s Giant Panda Unit.

Note: New images are now posted in the Panda Photo Gallery.

Izu, our male lion at Lion Camp, was the first to frolic in the snow early Saturday morning. The Conservation Corps had built two snowmen in Lion Camp that had been decorated appropriately with meat instead of boring coal. Izu had great fun attacking the “intruders” and continued to bat the large snowballs around several hours later.

Sumatran tiger Delta and her cubs were next on the list to receive this special treat. Not only were the tigers getting snow; it happened to be one of the two days of the week that our tigers receive a large bone as a treat. This gave the Conservation Corps a very mischievous idea: bury the bones in the snow piles! The cubs quickly went to work digging the precious bones free from the snow; the looks on their faces were priceless as they padded off, bone in mouth. Our tigers are no dummies; where food was found once it must certainly be there again, right? Not quite. On Sunday, more snow piles were put out for the cubs, but this time they did not hold a prize. Those cubs flattened the piles quicker than you could say “snowball fight!” Realizing that there was nothing more, the cubs began to investigate the actual snow a little closer but grimaced at the cold.

Blanca, our white tiger, was given a snow pile containing her food. Food, to Blanca, proved to be much more interesting than the snow itself. After digging out every last morsel, she stretched out in front of the snow and enjoyed all the attention being showered on her from our guests. She is such a ham!

Finally the cheetahs were given the opportunity to investigate the snow. Since our three girls love the water, I thought that perhaps they would enjoy the snow or at least chase after the snowballs. Boy, was I wrong! All three girls watched very closely as we rolled a large black tub filled with snow into their exhibit. Keeping their distance, Etana was the first to show her disdain for the new addition to her home. As we dumped the snow out of the barrel, Etana very bravely tried to scare it off with a hiss and a growl; when this didn’t work, she moved to safety under the cover of a fallen tree about 20 feet away. Pombe and Moyo watched us without a shred of enthusiasm as we tossed snowballs past them. Pombe did come over to investigate a few times but decided that getting a little love from her keepers was a much better use of her time! Etana, who is great at holding a grudge, took it very personally that we had littered her home with snow and remained mad at us until a little meat persuasion convinced her that we were still friends.

I guess you can say that our cats are true Californians, preferring the warm to the cold! It was a lot of fun for all, though, and I would like to thank all the people in the Education Department and the Conservation Corps for making this white weekend happen!

Kym Nelson is a keeper at the Wild Animal Park.

Please note: The image used above was taken in December 2004; no images were taken of the recent snow day. We used it here just to give our readers an idea of how much fun a snowman can be!

So what’s she like, our newest little girl? Precious, of course, but she’s that just by being a panda cub. What a rascal! She has the obvious intelligence of Bai’s side of the family, and the fiesty spunk of Gao Gao and Mei Sheng! Clambering and rolling, trying to climb, as panda cubs will do, but instead of working up the slanted branches, Zhen Zhen is trying to climb straight up the vertical tree trunks! (Of course she falls, which is half the fun, as long as she doesn’t bump her nose or chin. Please do not gasp or yell; it’s all part of the process!) Checking out the shelter box, clambering through and mouthing the piles of bamboo, grabbing a mouthful of Mom’s fur and tugging for attention, showing all those baby panda behaviors that make them so endearing. She is livelier than Su Lin was at the same age, with Mei Sheng’s adventurous streak, I think. From the little I’ve seen, she’s going to be a handful, in the best possible way, for both Mom and the staff here. We’re already checking the tree limbs’ position and length, even though she’s “bearly” up off the ground. We know from past experience what adept climbers this young bears can be, especially if they’re in an inquisitive mood!

And what of Bai Yun, the Perfect Panda? The great experienced panda mother is eating a lot, taking fruitsicles and bamboo away from her curious cub, and sleeping, and nursing, and cuddling the cub; just doing the “good panda mom” thing. When I left them, they’d curled up together on the grass for a nap.

As of this moment, no definite plans for public viewing have been announced and I can tell you that schedules are changing, sometimes on a daily basis, so be patient with all of us at the San Diego Zoo’s Giant Panda Research Station. Zhen Zhen is more than worth the wait!

Ellie Rosenbaum is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

Note: Zhen Zhen will make her public debut on Saturday, December 22. She will be out daily from 9 to 11 a.m. in the Giant Panda Research Station’s “classroom” exhibit.

My definition of “play” may differ from yours. It had been almost five days since I had worked as a keeper. Oh sure, there were the great moments interacting with Mei Sheng to get him safely to his destination and the occasional heave ho of crates here and there. But I hadn’t picked up a rake and shovel, or tied a bundle of anything, for almost a week! I think I was having withdrawals. I asked Dr. Desheng if it would be alright for me to spend a day with the keepers at Wolong, working with the pandas. He said he had hoped I could give a short lecture before lunch that day, but if I wanted to work on grounds that was fine, too. “Yea, I get to work with the keepers!” I thought. “Boo, I have to give a lecture,” I thought at the same time. Not that I didn’t want to interact with their staff, but by this time I was just about talked out, considering all the media and panda fans we had encountered since we left San Diego. But I had been given a DVD of Bai Yun’s ultrasounds, and Mei Sheng’s keepers had sent me off with a DVD of their training efforts with him. Wouldn’t it be nice for me to watch the DVDs with Wolong’s frontline employees and be able to answer any questions they had first hand? Perfect! I had my day planned.

The morning started out very cold. (I’m not a fan of cold. That is why I live in San Diego.) Nonetheless, I was excited to see my old friends Wu and Wei, who had been to the San Diego Zoo several years before. I had been able to pick them out of the crowd during Mei Sheng’s welcome-home ceremony. Wu, a lead keeper like myself, met me at 8:30 a.m. He got a pair of coveralls for me to wear while I worked with him in the maternity area. I watched the little juvenile pandas just waking up across the way. I could hear keepers calling their animals off exhibit into holdings so that the business of cleaning exhibits and feeding could be done. It felt comfortable! (Lisa is pictured with one of the one-year-olds.)

Wu and I walked to his area past some of the other volunteer staff who participate in their program. Everyone was busy. Wu opened all the doors, of course, but he let me feed the females to help shift them where he needed them to be. We traded sweeping up and scrubbing rooms and hosing as we moved along the row of buildings. I took pictures of the blood draw sleeves that were affixed to most bedrooms, an idea I like to think San Diego helped them cultivate. He commented how he liked San Diego’s hoses better. I know why: we have fantastic water pressure, but more importantly, our hoses have the threads we can attach nozzles to at their ends; Wolong’s hoses were just long enough to be able to reach what we were hosing and they had no threaded end, just a blunt cut. Brooms made of all-natural materials and large, metal boxes with wire handles for shovels were our tools. The routine was status quo: sweep, scrub, hose, squeegee. No disinfectant was allowed in this area due to the mothers’ sensitivities while they have cubs.

There was only one bedroom I was not allowed to enter, as the mother was still in the cradling phase with her cub. I was allowed to watch from the building door as Wu entered the bedroom with this dam. He walked right up to her while she cradled her cub in her arms and showed her some food to entice her to shift for cleaning. As he led her to another room, the mother complied by walking on three legs and holding the cub in her right fore arm. How cool is that?! I’d never seen firsthand anything like this before. Our management of giant pandas is quite different in San Diego. Though I think we could probably get away with entering a pen with our pandas in an emergency situation, it is not in any way, shape, or form a practice that we employ. We really have no need. Despite the easy-going demeanor and slow, deliberate pace, giant pandas are still bears. There is a picture on one of the graphic panels, outside the San Diego Zoo’s panda gift shop, of two bears engaged in less-than-friendly communication. That is probably my favorite panda picture because it reminds me daily of that very fact. But I digress. Every other bedroom we cleaned had a mother and, in the corner of the room, a cub. Wu also let me place those cubs in safe, dry boxes while we cleaned the bedroom and then return them when we finished. It took the place, for me, of the cub exams I was missing back home with our newest cub, now known as Zhen Zhen.

We had time for one more bedroom before I needed to prepare for my keeper talk. The mother was still eating her bamboo. I stood there with my bread ready to offer, but she paid me no attention. Mr. Wu pointed to her and said, “Hua Mei” so casually I almost didn’t hear him. “What?” I had to ask. He repeated himself and I pointed to the little cub in the corner and said “Hua Mei’s baby?” “Yes, one of them” he replied. “The other is in the nursery.” Ohmigosh, ohmigosh! Our little Mei Mei all grown up. I was gazing at one of the twins from her third set since she had arrived in Wolong! (Hua Mei is pictured at right.)

It makes me sound so lame, but if I didn’t know any better I’d swear I was looking at Bai Yun: a large female totally involved in one of her favorite pastimes…eating. The cub was sleeping comfortably in the den corner, which has always translated for Bai that it was a good time to mack out on any and all food available. Like mother, like daughter! Hua Mei even sported the same laissez-faire attitude which seemed to say, in my anthropomorphic translation, “There’s my baby. Help yourselves, but don’t wake her up. I’m busy.” I snapped some pictures, but we still had work to do. I was unable to be present for any of the twin swapping that occurs, but later in the day I went looking for Wu, who works in the nursery. I didn’t find him, but one of the nursery staff held a cub up to the window and waved its paw at me. It was Mei’s other baby. I fired off a snapshot (pictured above) and spent the rest of the time ogling the little face through the window. Funny how they knew I’d be interested in seeing Mei and her babies. What a joy!

After my keeper work fix, I went back to my room to change for our keeper talk which, unfortunately, did not happen due to technical difficulties. So afer lunch, we decided to take in the sites. Did you know that there is a Giant Panda Museum devoted to all things panda? It is not far from Wolong’s panda facility. We had our own docent to tour us through the facility. Very interesting! From murals to biological samples to historical and prehistoric exhibits, it was a fantastic opportunity to see. We also took a ride farther up the road to Panda Valley. At the entrance is an interpretive exhibition hall in the making. Beyond that, there is a beautiful hike through mountains and caves across suspension bridges and up and down hand-made steps surrounded by forest and waterfalls. Just breath taking! It turned out to be an enriching day for me and a wonderful farewell to Wolong that I’ll hold in my memories for years to come.

Lisa Bryant is a team area lead at the San Diego Zoo.

We have been saying all along that this cub is different from the others, more quiet. Our data indicates we were right on with that assessment. Zhen did not emit the highest level of vocalization, the “cry”, throughout the denning phase, except on one day (day 4). Cries were recorded for Gao Gao’s other offspring in the first three weeks of life, especially with Mei Sheng (boys!). And the next highest intensity vocalization, the “squawk,” occurred much less frequently with Zhen than her siblings throughout the entire denning phase, too (scroll to bottom of page to see graph). She seems to have been more content from birth, either as a factor of her personality or a function of Bai Yun’s excellent maternal care.

Bai Yun was different this time, too. She left the den regularly at an earlier time than with Zhen’s siblings. She spent more time feeding in the second month postpartum than with Gao Gao’s other cubs. She more readily placed Zhen in contact with the ground than with other cubs (see graph below). All of which suggests one of two things: either this cub was more tolerant and allowed her mother more freedom, or Bai Yun was more competent and more efficient at placating her infant so that she had more time to focus on her own needs.

In a sense, our research efforts have mirrored Bai Yun’s maternal efforts over the years. Initially, we looked at every clue and all evidence we could find to assess Bai Yun’s reproductive status during estrus and pregnancy. We sweated every detail when she gave birth to Hua Mei. With time, our success has allowed us to pare down and strip away the non-essential, and we can focus our energy and resources on those aspects of her behavior and biology we know are most informative to help us answer whatever questions and concerns we have. Likewise, Bai Yun no longer seems to waste time on prolonged estruses, extending courtship dances with Gao Gao, or fumbling with finding the best to calm a restless infant. She too has stripped away the non-essential and is extremely efficient at getting the job done, no matter what it may be.

I am curious about the long-term ramifications of this. Young Hua Mei has already proven to be a successful breeder and mother. Will Su Lin outshine her someday? Will Zhen be the ultimate in panda breeding success stories? Will Bai Yun’s grandchildren show different skill sets as a result of their mother’s different backgrounds? It’s hard to know where the legacy of good maternal care comes to an end, but it will be interesting to wait and see.

Suzanne Hall is a senior research technician with the San Diego Zoo’s Giant Panda Unit.

Scroll to the very bottom of this page to view Suzanne’s graphs.

There have been a lot of changes to the viewing areas. Su Lin and Gao Gao are each enjoying newly revamped, renovated, and redecorated enclosures! Some of the older climbing material has been cut out, dead trees removed, and wonderful new climbing trunks and branches added—whole new environments to be explored! Our Horticulture Department takes great pride in assembling and maintaining the “zoo furniture” in exhibits all over the San Diego Zoo and are always on the lookout for interesting pieces of tree to include in the climbing structures. Recycling is a way of life in all departments here, and the Horticulture staff have a network of friends all over San Diego who keep their eyes and ears open for large trees that are being cut down or have blow down that can be incorporated here. One of the main branches in the left-hand panda viewing area came from a tree in Mission Hills; the new triple-trunked stump is actually from Zoo grounds, the tree cut down to make way for the new Elephant Odyssey habitat! It makes for quite a change visually, and father and daughter have spent lots of careful inspection time.

And what of mother and baby? They are doing just fine. Regular Panda Cam viewers have noticed a lot of activity and, increasingly, an empty den as Bai Yun removes the cub for “panda lessons” outside the den or, as Zhen Zhen’s activity level increases, her own forays out. For those of us anxious to meet and greet our latest baby, all of this activity is a positive thing, as it prepares her for her public debut. When will that be? As I always say, keep checking the Web site for further updates.

Ellie Rosenbaum is a panda narrator at the San Diego Zoo.

Before we left, however, Mei Sheng had an opportunity to walk around in the hospital’s adjacent holding yard, which looked a lot like his exhibit in San Diego. It had grass, a small pool, a cave, and climbing structures. He was a very busy bear. He must have explored and smelled every inch of the enclosure but that was not enough; he then had to go back and scent mark everywhere he had smelled. Best enrichment there is! Walking around out there he looked like a different bear to me. Something in his posture told me he had a sense that he was in a different place. He was indeed a big boy bear.

Alas, it was time for his final trip into the crate. As the door was opened for him, one of the Wolong staff members called me over to assist them. As I walked over to the crate, Mei Sheng made a pass by the crate door and then walked right in like an old pro. I heard one of the reporters comment, “Did you see that? Lisa just walked over to him and he came right toward her.” Truth be told, I believe our boy would have done the same whether I was near or not. He knew the drill by this time.

We drove him in the back of a truck to the quarantine facility about five minutes up the road from the breeding facility. Beyond a locked gate and over the river was a very isolated building with holding pens. Scott asked me how I thought Sheng would like it. I answered him honestly: “With no people or activities around he’s probably going to be lonely.” “Oh no,” Scott replied. “He’s not going to be alone. I’ll be here with him.” Scott was going to be in quarantine also! He would live at the facility while Sheng was there. That made me feel much better. Now that’s how you get acquainted with someone!

As I leaned on the truck bed, watching Sheng, it all became very final all of a sudden for me. The keepers had said their good-byes the morning he left San Diego. I’ve been with him every day since then. Until now. At this moment it became final. This could be the last time I see this handsome boy that I escorted to and from the den for cub exams days after his birth, this animal I helped carry on and off exhibit when his mother was more interested in her bamboo than her cub (if you know Bai Yun, you know what I mean!) knowing we’d make sure he got where he needed to be. I shouldn’t rightfully call him “my boy” from this point forward. As he sat in his crate with sleepy eyes, obviously enjoying the sunshine, I stroked his paw. A tear rolled down my cheek as I thought how lucky I was to call caring for him and the rest of the pandas my job. What a big part he played in my appreciation and understanding of these special animals. We carried him across the river and released him into his pen. I saw Scott the next day and he said that Sheng had fallen asleep with the enrichment toy that had traveled with him to China from San Diego. Maybe he missed us, too.

Since I’ve been back, Scott and I have e-mailed each other a few times. He said Sheng had a little jet lag at first but he was doing well. I know just how he felt! I’m sure we’ll keep in touch and I’ll share updates when I have them with all of you because I know you think of him as often as I do.

Lisa Bryant is a team area lead at the San Diego Zoo.