National Geographic Kids USA - August 2017

SMITHSONIAN’S NATIONAL ZOO (BEI BEI OVER FIRST “P” IN TITLE, THREE WEEKS OLD); THE WASHINGTON POST / CONTRIBUTOR / GETTY IMAGES (BEI BEI OVER “N” IN TITLE); SKIP BROWN / NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CREATIVE (BEI BEI OVER “A” IN TITLE); REBECCA

HALE / NG STAFF (BEI BEI OVER “PA” IN TITLE, BEI BEI NEXT TO “R” IN TITLE, 1, 2, 3); SKIP BROWN (SITTING IN GRASS)

B

ei Bei the giant panda watches as his keeper waves around a

tennis ball. Curious, the six-month-old bear nudges the ball with

his nose. The caretaker responds by feeding the panda a yummy

chunk of cooked sweet potato. Realizing he’ll receive a treat for

jabbing the ball, the animal shoves it again with his schnoz. Sure

enough, his keeper rewards him with another potato slice.

The panda is having fun, but the caretaker is working on something more

serious. Keepers are putting Bei Bei through basic training to teach

him important skills, and this is one of his exercises. The things

Bei Bei learns will help keepers care for the young panda

as he grows from small fuzz ball to full-size adult.

ZOOKEEPERS TEACH A GIANT PANDA

NEWSKILLSTO HELP HIM GROW UP.

BIG BABY

Bei Bei was born at the Smithsonian’s

National Zoo in Washington, D.C., in the

summer of 2015. Hairless and about

the size of a stick of butter, the

newborn spent most of his time

nursing and snuggling with

his mom, Mei Xiang (may

SHONG). Keepers monitored

the pair using cameras

that live-streamed video

from their indoor

enclosure. They’d also

occasionally distract

Mei Xiang with a

snack and sneak the

baby away for a

medical checkup.

Keepers use a tennis ball to teach Bei Bei

movements he’ll use during checkups.

For instance, they feed Bei Bei treats if he

touches the ball with his nose.

Keepers later replace the ball with a hand

signal during checkups—and he still gets

treats!

Keepers use atennis ballto teachBeiBei

1

Forinstancetheyfeed Bei Beitreatsif he

2

Keeperslaterreplacethe ballwitha hand

3

THE THREE-WEEK-OLD

PANDA IS GIVEN AN

EXAMINATION.

BY JAMIE KIFFEL-ALCHEH

Bei Bei

(pronounced

BAY (^) BAY) means
“precious
treasure” in
Chinese.
12 AUGUST 2017