After 7 years it’s good to be back in Washington DC again, and seeing a brand new pair of pandas at the Smithsonian National Zoo! My first visit was back in 2018 and since then Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and youngest cub Xiao Qi Ji left DC in November 2023 and a year later in October 2024 a brand new pair arrived and went on show to the public in January 2025 after quarantine and some settling in time. So let’s meet Bao Li 宝力 and Qing Bao 青宝!
While these two are brand new pandas to the zoo, I’m lucky enough to have seen both of them before their move stateside – I was in China in May 2024 and saw them both before they were even announced as the pair making the move! I saw Bao Li living in the Wolong Shenshuping Base and he was an absolute highlight, so active and captivating, everyone was really loving watching him. Then I saw Qing Bao at the Dujinagyan Base living with her twin brother, Qing Zai, and Singapore-born Le Le – this trio were a lot more chilled and slept and ate while I was there!
Overall the panda area at the Smithsonian National Zoo hasn’t changed too much – although there were a few things I didn’t remember from before. I think maybe last time there was some renovation work going on so we couldn’t view the pandas from the overlook or the path coming from the Asia Trail direction because I don’t remember this at all and I really had a great view from up there on this trip. There is a one-way system in place at the panda habitat, first you go past the outdoor yards – these had some new climbing frames since my last visit. There are 3 yards, 2 of which were connected when I was there so the panda could enjoy either space, the 3rd yard was much larger, so overall both of them had around the same amount of outside space. Lots of trees and foliage, and of course enrichment opportunities. Most of the outdoor viewing is barrier-free, but there is one section at two of the yards where you can view through glass. After viewing the outside, you work your way around to the building – depending on time and crowds there may be a line to get in. I was there on a weekend and found it to be a bit quieter in the mornings and I needed to line up in the afternoons, however the line was never very long and I don’t think I waited more than 15 minutes or so. Inside there are 4 separate spaces, however these are currently set up into 2 linked spaces for each panda, again they have some indoor environment options as well. In here there were new climbing frames and I think some of the previous rock-work had also changed.
Bao Li 宝力
First up, male Bao Li 宝力! Bao Li is a very special choice for the Smithsonian National Zoo – his mum is Bao Bao, who was born in the zoo in 2013 to parents Mei Xiang and Tian Tian. She was the first surviving cub in a number of years, so hers was a very special birth, and now she’s contributing to the population as a very successful mother herself. Bao Li is from her second pregnancy, and he has a twin brother who I’ve also been lucky enough to see earlier this year in the Dujiangyan Base! Bao Li was born in 2021, so had just turned 4 years old when I saw him on this trip, he’s still just as fun and playful as when I saw him in China^ He has such a lovely personality and was so chilled out across the two days of my visit.
When I first arrived both mornings he was outside enjoying his breakfast – overall he spent his days pretty equally between the inside and outside yards and I saw him a good proportion of my time in each, giving me a nice variety of photos. With this yard, you do see him a bit better from the upper path viewing, and there was plenty of space for lots of people to get a good view of him. He had some different enrichment toys both outside and inside and on both the days, so lots of puzzles to figure out for treats. On the afternoon of the first day he got a fruit ice treat and he seemed to really love this, I sure loved watching this as I saw grandpa Tian Tian get the same treat on my last visit! On the second day the highlight was seeing him having an absolute whale of a time with a big plastic basin which must of had some sort of treat rubbed inside it – he spent at least 30mins focusing on the basin, giving it a very thorough lick and holding it on his head XD
Such a highlight and a treat to see Bao Li again and I can’t wait to watch him grow over the years.
Qing Bao 青宝
And then we have female Qing Bao 青宝, who I also saw on my 2024 trip to China, again, really lovely to see her for a second time =) Qing Bao also has a twin brother, and they were also born in 2021, making her now 4 years old. Her mother is Jia Mei and her father is Qing Qing, who I saw also at the Dujiangyan Base way back in 2017 (the same trip I saw Bao Bao on)! Whilst I haven’t seen Jia Mei before, Qing Qing is a very recognisable panda, not only for his pink lower lip but he also has a particularly round fuzzy face, so he is partly responsible for Qing Bao‘s face, which might be the roundest and fluffiest I have seen^
There were signs up at the yard and also a post on social media before my trip that she was experiencing her first pseudopregnancy so may be showing different behaviours – this is definitely a risk with an August-timed trip so I went with the expectation that I might not see her or just see her sleeping, and I was quite fine with that. Well I got completely the opposite! She was so active, and spent a lot of time exploring both inside and outside, climbing, eating and enjoying her enrichment items. I was so surprised, so many of the things she did were highlights! I first saw her outside and she was really looking over all areas of her yard, there is a cave section and it was adorable to see her climbing in and around this. She also made sure to keep a watchful eye over her keepers who were working inside as she sat next to the fence beside them! Inside she also had different enrichment options with some carrots as a treat, and she got what looked like sweet potato or maybe squash mushed and spread over some plastic rounds, she loved these and spent ages licking these and pushing them around and playing with them. She even had her enrichment items in her pool and was picking them up and draining the water from them!
But top two highlights: watching her eat a pear, absolutely adorable. Then seeing her way up in a tall tree – with the viewing options you could actually get pretty close to the height she was at, I spent a good few hours there waiting for her to climb down and eventually patience paid off and I caught her climbing down on video! From going in with low expectations to seeing her climbing a tree, honestly couldn’t have asked for much better of an experience =D
