Two giant pandas from China landed in Atlanta on Sunday morning, as visitors at the city's zoo looked forward to seeing pandas there again after a nearly two-year absence.
Male Ping Ping and female Fu Shuang arrived aboard a chartered FedEx cargo plane after departing from the Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport in southwest China's Sichuan Province.
Ping Ping was born on March 17, 2020, and Fu Shuang on Oct. 18, 2020. They are expected to stay at Zoo Atlanta for 10 years under a conservation agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association.
Alex Haller, a visitor from Miami, said on Saturday, before the pandas arrived, that she wanted to come back to see them.
"I'm so excited! I heard it's been a while, so I'm really excited that you guys are getting your pandas back! Can't wait to come back and see them," Haller said.
Another visitor, Nikki Roberts, showed photos she had taken three years earlier of Ya Lun and Xi Lun, twin sisters born at the zoo.
"I'm excited. I love pandas. They're so cute, they look squishy. This is the pandas when we came here," Roberts said.
Ya Lun and Xi Lun were the youngest of seven cubs born in five litters to Lun Lun and Yang Yang, who arrived from China in 1999. Their first cub, Mei Lan, went on to father Meng Lan and the twins He Hua and He Ye, all of whom have become celebrity pandas in China.
Lun Lun and Yang Yang left for China with Ya Lun and Xi Lun in October 2024, ending 25 years of giant pandas at Zoo Atlanta.
Visitors will have to wait a little longer to meet Ping Ping and Fu Shuang. The pair will undergo quarantine and be given time to adjust to their new surroundings before going on public view. Chinese veterinarians and caretakers arrived ahead of them to help with their care.
New pandas arrive in Atlanta, stirring excitement and fond memories
