Zoo Atlanta’s giant pandas, Lun Lun, Yang Yang, Ya Lun, and Xi Lun, will be returning to China in mid-October 2024, marking the end of the zoo’s long-standing panda agreement with China. Fans and visitors are encouraged to visit the pandas at the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant Panda Conservation Center over the next few weeks before their departure.
Raymond B. King, Zoo Atlanta’s president and CEO, acknowledged the pandas’ lasting legacy in Atlanta and around the world, emphasizing their contributions to scientific understanding of the species. “It has been our privilege to be able to share this remarkable family with our Members and guests for 25 years,” King said.
Zoo Atlanta’s giant panda program, established in 1999 with the arrival of Lun Lun and Yang Yang, celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. Throughout the program, the zoo has supported panda conservation efforts, including habitat restoration and genetic diversity research, while contributing to the global understanding of panda behavior and biology.
To commemorate the pandas’ departure, Zoo Atlanta will host a farewell event, “Panda-Palooza,” on October 5, 2024.
Since 2006, seven giant pandas, including two sets of twins, have been born at Zoo Atlanta. Five of the offspring already reside at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China, where they have since become parents themselves.
