Two-year-old female panda Chun Yu, or "Spring Rain", was captured on video as she took a break from munching on bamboo to politely pat the head of her good friend Ji Fu, another young panda.
The footage captured in June shows Ji Fu preparing to join Chun Yu for a helping of bamboo. Ji Fu leans back lazily, bamboo shoot in hand, and makes eye contact with her meal companion, who then reaches out to deliver a few playful pats.
The pandas are currently residents of the Panpan Garden at the Dujiangyan base of the China Conservation and Research Center for Giant Pandas (CCRCGP) in Sichuan.
Chun Yu, born in August 2022, is the daughter of Qiao Qiao, a female giant panda rescued from the Mount Siguniang Scenic Area, making Chun Yu a second-generation member of wild panda lineage.
Ji Fu, also born in August 2022, is the daughter of panda Cui Cui. Weighing 270.4 grams at birth, Cui Cui holds the record as the heaviest baby panda born in captivity.
The CCRCGP is a world-leading institution for breeding and conserving one of China's national treasures. The center has also established a global platform for promoting international cooperation and exchanges involving 18 zoos from 16 countries and regions, 39 domestic animal breeding institutions, and more than 10 scientific research institutes.
Polite panda cub greets friend with gentle head pats
