China has selected a pair of giant pandas, Wangwang and Funi, to live in
Australia as a goodwill gesture promised during a recent visit to
Australia by President Hu Jintao.
The male panda Wangwang is two years old, born on August 31 in
2005, and the female one Funi is one year old, born on August 23 in
2006, said Cao Qingyao, spokesman for the State Forestry
Administration, at a routine press conference on Wednesday.
The pair currently reside in the Wolong-based China Conservation
and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Southwest China's
Sichuan province, but will move to Adelaide Zoo, in South
Australia, Cao said.
Cao said the China Wildlife Conservation Association, on behalf
of the ministry, has signed a ten-year agreement with Adelaide Zoo
on the protection and joint research of the giant pandas.
"The Australian side has started preparations for the
construction of facilities for the pandas and the pair will be
transported to Australia as soon as the facilities are ready," said
Cao.
Another pair of giant pandas, Bing Xing and Hua Zui Ba, set off
for Madrid on Friday to stay in Spain for ten years.
The giant panda is one of the world's rarest animals, with about
1,590 living in the wild in China, mostly in the southwest of the
country. Another 210 have been bred in captivity.
China has been raising pandas through artificial insemination
and breeding for nearly 50 years. The number of newborns rose to 34
with 30 surviving last year. Both were record figures.
(Xinhua News Agency September 12, 2007)
