Two 6-year-old pandas open public habitat at Zoo Atlanta

Zoo Atlanta opened the Arthur M. Blank Panda Grove to the public on Friday, introducing two 6-year-old giant pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, to visitors for the first time. The animals arrived in the United States in September and have since finished a mandatory isolation period.

The zoo released footage showing the pair eating bamboo within their new enclosure. Raymond B. King, president and CEO of Zoo Atlanta, characterized Ping Ping as energetic and Fu Shuang as more cautious. King told Good Morning America that the male panda has a distinct personality while the female is more reserved when trying new things. He noted that both animals have adapted well to their new surroundings.

Ping Ping was born on March 17, 2020, at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China. Fu Shuang was born in 2020 and celebrated her sixth birthday on October 18. Both pandas were born in China and are currently in the U.S. under a temporary conservation agreement between Zoo Atlanta and the China Wildlife Conservation Association. The zoo stated that the pair completed a routine quarantine in a biosecure area of the grove before the opening.

This marks the zoo's most recent introduction of giant pandas to its visitors. Zoo Atlanta last hosted giant pandas in 2024 when Lun Lun and Yang Yang departed for China. Those two pandas, who had been at the zoo since 1999, returned to Chengdu with their two youngest cubs, Ya Lun and Xi Lun. Lun Lun and Yang Yang now reside at the Chengdu Research Base along with their offspring.

Zoo Atlanta is one of three U.S. facilities currently holding giant pandas loaned from China. The San Diego Zoo houses Yun Chuan and Xin Bao. The National Zoo in Washington, D.C., is home to Bao Li and Qing Bao.