I found this in the Guardian, and thought it was interesting. Edinburgh's pandas: a baby may not set the turnstiles spinning | UK news | theguardian.com
Interesting, but I do wonder about the validity of the article. I was not aware that Melbourne Zoo had a panda cub, I was sure that they housed Fei Fei and Xiao Xiao for a few months and they then moved on, and the pair of pandas living permanently in Australia (at Adelaide Zoo) certainly haven't had a cub.
Those glaring errors alone should have had that piece spiked. There is an argument as to the economic viability of the Giant Panda loan systems that the Chinese are currently operating, but let's get the facts right in the first place.
Believe me, a baby panda is going to set the gates spinning. By the third or fourth baby panda at San Diego the crowds aren't insane, but with the first baby panda they had it was like Woodstock.
In Vienna only the birth of the first cub started a real pandamania in Austria. There was a TV show once a week on the baby panda and other animals at Zoo Vienna during the first months, until you could see the panda cub at the zoo. Then you had to wait for about 2-3 hours in a queue to see baby boy Fu Long. But when the TV show stopped, the queue lines started to get shorter, when Fu Long started to go outside no extra security guards was needed any more, there were still lots of visitors, but not only at the panda house. The birth of baby #2 was fine, but Fu Hu was not Fu Long, there was no extra TV show, no extra security guards were needed. Yang Yang gave birth to her 3rd cub on August 14, 2013. Who cares? It's just a cub you can't see for months (Zoo Vienna still does not have webcam nor live feed from the den on the screen next to the panda house. There visitors can only see some short video clips recorded by the keepers. On that, Zoo Vienna is still behind the times). At Vienna it is more interesting what is going on with the contract on the pandas. China hasn't signed the new 10-year-contract yet ...
Edinburgh Zoo are desperate to have a baby giant panda. Last year when the female was in heat nothing materialised, so this year she has been impregnated by A.I., not only from the male currently at Edinburgh, but also from the late late Bao Bao just to be on the safe side. The zoo's estimate of hitting the magical one million visitor mark has not materialised with the arrival of the giant pandas, they are now hoping a baby will boost the attendance figures to over one million with the arrival of a baby, you cannot blame them with having to pay £1643 to the Chinese for having the privilege, that is every day, seven days a week, fifty two weeks a year.
AI is no guarantee for a cub! Despite AI year after year, Mei Xiang at National Zoo had four or five pseudo-pregnancies between her son Tai Shan and the baby last year, which died at the age of one week.
Me personally? I wouldn't go all the way to Edinburgh to see a cub, but I'd probably go if I was in the area. For a lot of my non-zoo nerd friends, I've actually heard them say that they want to go to see the pandas.
With regards the financial estimates that RZSS based the Giant Panda Project on, these were very conservative compared to any other Zoo Panda projects. The 1 million visitors "target" does not exist....although no one would complain if we reached that! If i remember correctly it was 20% increase in year 1 (600k to 720k) which reached around 835k Year 2 and 3 were predicted to fall unless a cub was born and visitors would be around 800k
the bit about Melbourne Zoo in the article is a pretty glaring error that even three seconds of research would have avoided. I think the author was compounding Adelaide Zoo having a pair of pandas, and that zoo being $24 million in debt -- but the debt was arguably only indirectly connected with the pandas because visitor attendance went up by 70% after their arrival! Melbourne Zoo does have red panda cubs regularly so that probably went into the mix as well. See here for various opinions and articles: http://www.zoochat.com/24/adelaide-zoo-24-million-debt-219716/ Of course panda cubs are going to cause a huge attendance spike if Edinburgh achieves a birth.
A friend if mine has visited the zoo this week and mentioned to me that the exhibit is currently closed? Any reason for this? Cub perhaps????
According to the zoo's website: "Tian Tian is still showing all the right signs that indicate pregnancy and has recently become fairly sensitive to noise, so with this in mind we are closing the panda enclosure today so she can enjoy peace and quiet. We’ll update you as and when we know more."
I hope for them that she will deliver a cub, but I'm afraid she just shows a pseudopregnancy. IMHO, she hasn't settled in really well yet, a cub would be too much additional stress for Tian Tian.
I had never seen a Giant Panda before until January this year in Chiang Mai, Thailand. I paid the extra Baht 100 (£2!) to watch one munching bamboo and the other two sleeping. Then in March I went to Edinburgh Zoo and saw them there (the male was munching bamboo but the female was much more active, going outside a few times and eating something other than bamboo (a carrot). I was back at Chiang Mai Zoo in early June and wouldn't have bothered going to see the pandas if I hadn't been with Devilfish. I don't actually recall what they were doing and didn't take any pics, but I think they were sleeping. At the end of July I went to Singapore River Safari and saw one sleeping but the other(s) was off show. Then at the end of August I was at Ocean Park in Hong Kong and saw one there who was actually quite actively walking around it's enclosure. So having never seen them before I have seen them on 5 occassions in 4 different locations in the last 9 months. Would I go out of my way to see another? No, I would not, although if I'm back at Edinburgh Zoo next month I will probably have a quick look at them.
I made my partner book our holiday in Scotland last year so we could visit Edinburgh to see the pandas. I was excited to see my first panda and even managed to see one awake, did feel a bit like being shuffled through but glad we went. I was later informed by my dad that this was not my first panda as apparently saw them at London as a child All the hype over the possible birth has put us off booking to go again next month not just because we may not get to see the pandas but more worried about if she does give birth the mayhem at the zoo. Funny panda birth video below from Edinburgh facebook Edinburgh Panda Baby Watch: World's Media Gather (VIDEO)
I can't comment on Tian Tian, but I can honestly say that I grew up with Giant Pandas nearly always present at London Zoo. They were very seldom to be seen doing anything, and as I grew older I just used to walk past "Chia Chia", barely paying him a second glance. And then London Zoo, to its huge credit, announced that they were sending him to Cincinnati and thence to Mexico City so he could be paired up with a female. At that moment he became the animal that I most wanted to see. He still didn't move much, but my appreciation of his rarity had been completely transformed. I would love to see the species return to London Zoo.
This is the only articel I found on Tian Tian, published Oct 2, 2013: Edinburgh Zoo keepers insist giant panda Tian Tian is 'still behaving pregnant' - Daily Record
