It seems like it was just yesterday that Singapore had its very first panda cub after years of trying. Today, the chonky furball turned two and is no longer a mama’s boy.
Park operator Mandai Wildlife Group today celebrated Le Le’s 2nd birthday and announced that he will be separated from his mother Jia Jia in the coming months after showing signs of independence.
The beloved panda, who now weighs 65 kilograms, was spoiled with a large bamboo cake and a buffet of bamboo shoots, sugarcane, sweet potato, grape and peach presented on banana leaves and ice blocks.
His playtime also got intensified with a confetti of straw, hay and wood shavings.
According to his keepers, Le Le displayed behaviors that proved that he was ready to live in solitude, a life stage of Giant Pandas at around 18 months to 2 years of age. He was seen eating, resting and playing on his own.
Soon, Le Le will enter a new private den away from his mother but the public will still be able to see them at River Wonders’ Giant Panda Forest at different time slots from 10am to 2pm for Le Le and 2pm to 6pm for Jia Jia.
The pandas were brought over from China in agreement with the China Wildlife Conservation Association. While the parents’ contracts have been extended to 2027, there is no news on whether Le Le will be returned to China.
Mandai Wildlife Group had stated that the cub would return when it turns 2 years old.
In the meantime, we can only hope for another successful breeding season for the pandas that are notoriously hard to breed.
RELATED:
