Pandas are not native to Japan. They’re from China. But Japanese people love them, my wife among their biggest fans. And as close as I can determine, there are eleven of these beautiful, fascinating creatures, living here in Japan right now: seven at Adventure World in Wakayama, one in Kobe, three in Tokyo.
A baby panda was just born in Wakayama this past November. At first they thought it was male, but panda experts arrived from Chengdu, China and on closer examination, little 楓浜 — Fuhin is the name given to the baby panda and you can even watch the naming ceremony on YouTube — turned out to be a female.
Why are panda births such newsworthy events?
Aside from all the usual complications and obstacles which impede successful fertilization and full-term pregnancies, then the newborns striving to survive their frailty the first month or so, giant pandas are only fertile in the spring of each calendar year for 12-25 days, and “in the mood” — receptive to mating — for 2-7 of those days.
Thus typically, a giant panda only gets pregnant every two years.
When baby pandas are born, relative to their mothers, they are very tiny, usually around 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces).
Fuhin is now 4 1/2 months old and it’s almost impossible to believe how much she has grown since the above photo, taken soon after she was born. Here is a very recent video.
Anyway, my lovely wife with her unique fascinations, and I, curious and always open to encounters with new species, set out in a joint pursuit of “panda love”, spending a couple days in Wakayama, a splendid area of Japan to the southeast of Osaka. We saw three giant pandas, but not baby Fuhin, who was still safe in her private quarters, not on public view.
Then ten days later, we went to Kobe to visit Tan Tan, who is a mature 25-year-old female — that’s the equivalent of 60-70 in human years — notable for her very short legs. She has been a favorite among panda watchers for over 20 years now!
Let’s see. That leaves three more to see in Tokyo. Then we’ll just have to go directly to Giant Panda headquarters in Chengdu, China. I’m embarrassed to say that I personally was in Chengdu back in 2009 but didn’t visit the panda breeding center there. What can I say? I only had seven days there and Chengdu is a huge city with a host of very interesting attractions and things to do. I did make it to the Great Wall!
Watch for updates. Our new found panda obsession will not be going away soon.
They’re just so doggone cute!
