Bai Yun
Encyclopedia
Giant Panda
The giant panda, or panda is a bear native to central-western and south western China. It is easily recognized by its large, distinctive black patches around the eyes, over the ears, and across its round body. Though it belongs to the order Carnivora, the panda's diet is 99% bamboo...
currently at the San Diego Zoo
San Diego Zoo
The San Diego Zoo in Balboa Park, San Diego, California, is one of the most progressive zoos in the world, with over 4,000 animals of more than 800 species...
. Bai Yun was the first successful birth of a giant panda at the Wolong Giant Panda Research Center
Wolong National Nature Reserve
Wolong National Nature Reserve is a protected area located in Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province, People's Republic of China. Established in 1963, the reserve covers an area of about 200,000 hectares in the Qionglai Mountains region. There are over 4,000 different species recorded in the reserve....
in China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. She has been at the San Diego Zoo since September 10, 1996.
History
Bai Yun's mother, Dong Dong was wild caught and was at the Panyu Xiangjiang Wild Animal World in GuangzhouGuangzhou
Guangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
at the time her death in 2011. Bai Yun's father, Pan Pan, who is also the sire of Tian Tian, lives in Zunyi
Zunyi
Zunyi is a prefecture-level city in Guizhou province in southwestern China. Along with Guiyang and Liupanshui, it is one of the most important cities of the province...
.
In the spring of 1999, Bai Yun was artificially inseminated
Artificial insemination
Artificial insemination, or AI, is the process by which sperm is placed into the reproductive tract of a female for the purpose of impregnating the female by using means other than sexual intercourse or natural insemination...
with sperm from Shi Shi, the male panda at the zoo at that time. On August 21, 1999, Bai Yun gave birth to her first cub, Hua Mei, who is also the first giant panda born in the United States to survive to adulthood.
Bai Yun has since given birth to four other cubs, Mei Sheng
Mei Sheng
Mei Sheng is a male giant panda born at the San Diego Zoo. He is the second panda to be born at the zoo and is the first offspring of Bai Yun and Gao Gao. He is the half brother of Hua Mei and the brother of Su Lin, Zhen Zhen, and Yun Zi.Mei Sheng was sent to China on November 5, 2007...
(2003), Su Lin (2005), Zhen Zhen
Zhen Zhen
Zhen Zhen, , pronounced 'jun jun' is a female giant panda born to Bai Yun and Gao Gao at the San Diego Zoo. Her name means "Precious". She is Bai Yun's fourth cub, and Gao Gao's third. Zhen Zhen has one half sibling, Hua Mei, and three full siblings, Mei Sheng, Su Lin, and Yun Zi...
(2007), and Yun Zi
Yun Zi
Yun Zi is a male giant panda born at the San Diego Zoo on August 5, 2009. His name is "Son of Cloud" in Chinese.Weighed in at 4 ounces, Yun Zi is the fifth cub born to his mother Bai Yun, and the fourth to his father Gao Gao. He has one half-sister, Hua Mei, through Bai Yun. He also has one full...
(2009), all via natural mating. Bai Yun and these cubs' sire, Gao Gao
Gao Gao
Gao Gao is a male giant panda currently at the San Diego Zoo. To date, he is the sire to four giant pandas in captivity.-History:Gao Gao was born in the wild in China, around 1992, and was taken to the Fengtongzhai Nature Reserve in 1993 suffering from injuries which resulted in the loss of...
, are considered the most reproductively successful panda parents in captivity.