Step by Step: A Weaning Update
Posted at 12:56 pm February 7, 2007 by Suzanne Hall
As you know by now, we have moved a step forward with the weaning process for Bai Yun and Su Lin. As of last Friday evening (February 2), we began separating the bears overnight. This is, as the keepers noted in their recent blog entry, step two in our weaning protocol.
Step one involved several days of separation in the morning hours. Having personally watched the bears for many hours on several days last week, I was able to see how easily both bears adapted to their time apart. In fact, on many mornings it appeared that the two didn't even notice the door closed between them. Su Lin spent much of her time resting high in the trees in her exhibit, as usual, and on most days didn't search for her mother during the separation time. Another great indicator to us that things were going well was that keepers were easily able to separate the bears each morning, with Su Lin shifting independently of Bai Yun and readily moving into her new bedroom while keepers cleaned exhibits. Frankly, the first step of the process could not have gone better.
The overnight separation the bears are now experiencing lengthens the time Bai Yun and Su Lin are apart. Although this occurs when staff is not on site at the facility, we are still able to keep an eye on the bears. The panda yards are equipped with a myriad of cameras, which we have been using to record overnight behavior for the two pandas. First, we taped their activity before the nighttime separation, so we would have a baseline to which we could compare future behavior. Since Friday, we have been collecting video of how the pair is responding to this new separation window. In watching the tapes, it is clear that Su Lin is adjusting to this change, as well.
The first two nights, she was very calm in the early part of the evening. After about 2 a.m., however, she would begin taking some short walks about her exhibit, occasionally checking the door that would take her to Bai Yun. She wandered for about half an hour each night. Ultimately, she settled into sleep and seemed content enough. This type of restlessness is expected from a weaning cub, though I honestly had anticipated more of this than we have actually seen. On night three, however, things improved even further with Su Lin. Essentially, she ate bamboo and slept through the night. She's really showing us how adaptable she is!
Once reunited in the morning, neither Bai Yun nor Su Lin seeks to find the other immediately. Both choose to remain in their own space for at least 30 minutes, and usually longer. Nonetheless, Su Lin has been nursing daily at about 9:30 a.m., and rough play sessions have been observed in the afternoons. Clearly, despite her successes, our cub is still clinging to a bit of the vestiges of her childhood. For these reasons, we may opt to extend this current weaning phase a few days to allow her to further adapt.
One interesting note: Su Lin is doing so very well with the separation process as a whole, and it has invited comparison to our past cubs and their weanings. So far, this cub is most like her half sibling Hua Mei, who took the process in stride as well. It begs the question: are female cubs more adaptable? Do they respond to separation better than male cubs? Our sample size on this is very small, but it is an interesting thought nonetheless.
Suzanne Hall is the senior research laboratory technician for the Giant Panda Conservation Unit of Applied Animal Ecology/CRES.
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February 7th, 2007 at 1:50 pm
Suzanne, thank you for all the great info. It really helps ease alot of the fears i think we all had about the weaning process. I for one am looking foward to all the new adventures we have in store for us as a new chapter in our bears lives begin. As to either male or female having easier time I believe the boys are harder because to me all the males are " mamas boys" especially Tai Shan. Just a note we had a little snow and the D.C. family had a great time sleeping, rolling and just going crazy.
February 7th, 2007 at 1:58 pm
Thanks, Suzanne, for the update. Glad to hear things are going well. Su Lin and Bai Yun both seem to be calm and happy with the current arrangement and the gradual process. It would seem from your observations that a few extra days before the final separation might be a good idea for Su Lin to " get her playtime with mom" out of her system. Tai Shan appears to be going through the same process of nursing once a day and rough play with mom. They both seem to need someone to wrestle with for a few minutes a day. It reminds me of the play session at the " kindergarten" in Wolong where they show the cubs playing and wrestling. Without another cub to play with, mom has to do.
I read somewhere that observations in the wild of male cubs indicate that they stay with their mothers longer, up to 2 years. That is interesting given both Mei Sheng and Tai Shan appeared to be more dependent on their mothers' throughout their development into adolescent bears. Perhaps that " clinginess" we have all noticed is part of the inate dependence of males prior to " going it alone." Since males are more likely to fight for territory or females in the wild, it make sense that they would have to be more mentally and emotionally mature before striking out on their own. Besides, they would likely have to travel farther to find their own " territory." Females apparently stay relatively close based on the abundance and availability of quality food sources.
We'll stay tuned for further developments.
February 7th, 2007 at 2:47 pm
Thank you for this wonderful update. We have all been watching the process with much interest. It is good to know that things are going well and that the staff is being so careful and considerate of the bears. Has Bai Yun been able to increase her weight since the weaning process began? To an untrained eye, it looks as though the folds of skin that are visible when she is sitting up to eat have diminished some.
February 7th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
Bai Yun and Su Lin look like two ladies taking tea together (2:15 PM PST). They are both busy and happily chowing down on bamboo. Doesn't look like any competition going on. I notice that Su Lin doesn't sit beside her mother when she eats anymore. She sits facing her but a few feet away.
February 7th, 2007 at 4:20 pm
Let's face it, no matter the species, males just take a little longer to adapt. I'm 40 years old and still waiting for my boyfriend to be weaned from his mother. I must say, Su Lin has grown up to be a beautiful little bear. She's not quite a diva, but the girl definitley has a bit of an attitude. One can tell she will make a great mother herself one day. I am looking forward to the day when we might see twin cubs at SDZ.
It is my understanding the zoo will be getting sloth bears in the future. It will be a crime if they do not have a web cam for them. Sloth bear cubs give pandas a run for their money in the cuteness department.
February 7th, 2007 at 9:28 pm
Thanks to everyone there for constantly updating the weaning process.
How are the boys doing off exhibit? I miss seeing them but totally understand the need for " their" exhibit space to be used by the girls. Do they rotate between the off-exhibit areas? I would love it if the Meerkats could get them on the camera more.
Has Su Lin gotten her very own fruit-pop yet? — you know, one she didn't have to share with Bai Yun. I bet that would be a terrific treat for her!
February 8th, 2007 at 5:46 am
Thank you so much for the updates–those of us who live across the country can still be a part of these amazing animals' lives. One question–would it ever be possible that a cub could remain at a United States zoo (instead of being sent to China when they reach the appropriate age) and a mate sent from another U.S. zoo or from China so the " cub" could remain in the states throughout all or much of its entire life?
By the way, I like what Lynn (#5) said about 40 year old men still needing to be weaned from their mothers!
February 9th, 2007 at 2:56 am
Suzanne, thanks for sharing the progress Su Lin is making toward becoming fully independent. Things seem to be going well, based on your comments above, especially since she's enjoying her new space and trees. I'm glad to know that you're watching her carefully and may adjust the timetable if you think Su Lin will benefit from having a little more time to help her make the transition to being on her own.
I'm interested in the differences between how the male and female cubs go through the weaning process and can see that others here are, too. As we have a chance to see how Mei Lan in Atlanta and any new cubs born in the US respond in the future, we may get some answers to the question about gender being a factor. It isn't often that those of us outside of the zoo get to see living research going on in front of us, as we also enjoy watching the pandas.
I guess the phrase " Stay tuned" applies here! LOL
February 9th, 2007 at 11:56 am
Great view of Su Lin nursing at 10:50 AM. The smile on Bai Yun's face is priceless. She looks very content to have Su Lin nursing, and Su Lin appears to be getting every drop she can. They look so peaceful and calm. It appears that several hours of separation a day is fine with them right now, but they don't appear, at least in this view, to be ready for total separation yet.
February 9th, 2007 at 3:59 pm
Interview with Su Lin #2
Tourist: Hello, Su Lin.
Su Lin: Hello, Mr. Tourist.
T: So here you are by your hollow tree trunk climbing structure.
S: Yes, it's my winter chalet and it's in my winter estate.
T: So you like it here.
S: Yup. The trees are nice, too.
T: So what are you up to now? Those are such spirited moves.
S: I'm dancing.
T: Why are you dancing?
S: I'm practicing for the Talent Contest.
T: Oh. You mean for Mei Sheng's beauty pageant?
S: Yup. I'm going to do Hawaiian and other Polynesian dances.
February 9th, 2007 at 4:54 pm
Oh - I can picture little miss fancy pants with a grass skirt and flower lei - very cute. Glad she's enjoying her new digs - I mean chalet!
February 9th, 2007 at 7:39 pm
I can just picture a Chinese panda doing Hawaiian and Polynesian dances. Too funny, P Wong. In their imagination, these are very socially active pandas with Masquerade Balls, Beauty Pageants, and Talent Contests. Mei Sheng is going to be a very busy social butterfly before he goes to China for a rest.
When the pandas rest on top of the tree house, they look like they are sunbathing on the deck of a chalet. They seem to really like that spot because they can see all around, and are protected so they can rest.
February 10th, 2007 at 9:28 am
For #6- It's so nice to hear that there is still such a great fan base for the two boys Gao and Sheng! Unfortunately, the two off-exhibt spaces don't have the best camera set-ups in them. The one has only two black and white, non-movable cameras and the other one has the sun blocking the cameras for a large part of the day. We do rotate the two boys in these exhibits and will try to get them on camera when we can. Also, Sheng spends most of his time in the trees in these exhibits and is then out of camera sight altogether, something that Su Lin is also becoming quite good at!
February 10th, 2007 at 10:00 pm
Conversation with Mei Sheng #13
Tourist: Hello, Mei Sheng.
Mei Sheng: Hello, Mr. Tourist.
T: Congratulations on the success of your beauty pageant event.
M: Thanks. Nice that the satellite transmissions did well.
T: Yes. With that clear reception, the Chengdu contestants were really attractive.
M: And Daddy-O Gao Gao so enjoyed the feast.
T: Yes, it was such a big feast.
M: And Su Lin was so happy to win.
T: Her bamboo crown was spectacular.
M: Yes. It was special order, mighty tasty, too.
T: And Madame Bai Yun was so pleased.
M: Yup. She certainly deserved that Lifetime Achievement Award.
February 11th, 2007 at 6:59 am
While we're on the subject of the boys, would you please update the information on Mei Sheng? I know I read his weight a while back in a keeper blog, and he must be approaching the 200 lb. mark soon. So he is already bigger than his daddy …..???
February 11th, 2007 at 4:35 pm
Which one of the boys is most likely to be the one seen eating bamboo. Most of the views I have seen of them someone is eating. Then they seem to wander out of sight, which might mean it is Sheng climbing a tree for a nap.
February 12th, 2007 at 9:30 am
Current weight on boys as of this morning: Mei Sheng is about 178 lbs (81 kg) and Gao Gao is 167 lbs (76 kg).
For #16- It can be either boy. What it depends on is which exhibit. We have a nice camera shot of eating in the one exhibit but not the other. The boys rotate in this exhibit weekly. So, this week it is Sheng, next week it would be Gao. We tend to feed in this same spot regardless of bear because of the nice camera angle.
February 12th, 2007 at 10:06 am
I'm getting confused as to who's who on what camera. Is the " Which Panda Is This?" box still correct?
Moderator's note: An updated list of who's on what camera will post at noon today.
February 12th, 2007 at 11:37 am
Thanks Panda Keeper for the clarification. Since it was this week, it must have been Sheng. I love the climbing structure in that space. It looks like a lot of fun. No wonder Sheng likes to climb in that space. What type of climbing/exercise objects are in the other space where Shi Shi previously lived?
P. Wong - sounds like Sheng's beauty pageant was an all around family affair. They sure enjoyed it!
February 12th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
Daddy Gao is easy to recognise - his left ear is smaller!