CHINLAOSMYANMAR VIETNAMINDIABHUTANBANGLADESHNEP
ALWhere
giant pandas
liveFIC
ANBy six months of age, the 30-pound Bei
Bei had grown a fluffy fur coat and was
eating solid foods such as bamboo. That’s
when keepers began basic training, giving
the bear practice sessions each morning.
The panda’s training would teach him to
follow simple instructions that would make
it easier for vets to give him checkups and
keep the animal in shape.BEING NOSEY
First, staff introduced Bei Bei to a tennis
ball on a stick. “Pandas investigate with
their noses,” says Laurie Thompson, the
National Zoo’s assistant curator of giant
pandas. Every time Bei Bei touched his
nose to the ball, he’d get a small piece of
sweet potato. Teaching an animal to touch
an object is called target training. Soon
Bei Bei knew to nudge his target—the
ball—once keepers held it in front of him.
A few weeks later, a trainer began hold-
ing the ball above the animal’s head. To get
to his target, the panda stood on his hind
feet and clasped the wire mesh of his
enclosure wall with his front claws to stay
upright. Keepers repeated the action, add-
ing a hand signal to the routine. Eventually,
Bei Bei stood whenever he saw the signal.
Why teach Bei Bei to stand? It can make
it easier for vets to measure his body to
make sure he’s growing properly. “It’s also
good exercise!” Thompson says.COPY-BEAR
In order for Bei Bei to learn his next
skill—to lie down on command—the bear
became a copycat. Pandas are good at
mimicking their mom’s behavior and
movements. Keepers knew Bei Bei might
trytocopythemtoo.“SoIstartedlaying
down in front of him,” Thompson says.
At first Bei Bei seemed confused. But
his natural impulse to mimic took over, and
he eventually lay beside her. With practice
and rewards, Bei Bei began to sprawl out
when keepers gave him a hand signal to do
so. That’s useful during vet visits because
it keeps the panda in one place as his doc-
tors give him checkups. The movement
also exposes his belly so keepers can per-
form ultrasounds.
Now 18 months old, Bei Bei continues to
take lessons every morning. And he’s learn-
ing more tricks by mimicking his keepers,
such as opening his mouth
when they give him a
hand signal. This will
allow vets to check his
teeth. The panda will
even learn to put his
arm in a sleeve, which
will hold the limb in
place so doctors can do
blood tests.
But the panda’s
training isn’t just for
serious reasons. “We
add other behaviors to
keep him interested in
doing new things,”
Thompson says.For instance keepers might teach Bei Bei
to present his ear to them because pandas
like to have their ears scratched.
When Bei Bei’s not in basic training he’s
playing on a rock structure in his enclo-
sure, romping around outdoors with his
mom, or munching on bamboo stalks given
to him by his keepers. The animal will keep
up his routine of lessons and leisure for
now. In a couple years though, he’ll take his
skills on the road.BIG MOVES
By the time Bei Bei is four years old, he’ll be
flown to a breeding center located in his
natural habitat: a bamboo forest in China.
By age seven or eight, he’ll be introduced to
a mate and hopefully have cubs of his own.
That’s essential because pandas are vulner-
able, with only about 1,800 left in the wild.
The training Bei Bei received as a cub will
continue to come in handy in his new home.
Caretakers will use his skills to make check-
ups go smoothly. They might also have the
panda stand up and sit down repeatedly for
exercise. These “workouts” will keep him
strong. And by remaining healthy, Bei Bei
will increase his chances of breeding suc-
cessfully. Now
that’s panda
power!BUTTER BABY
Bei Bei was about the size of a stick of
butter at birth! Check out pics of the
baby panda soon after he was born.(^5) -INCH-TALL
STICK OF BUTTER
BEI BEI ROMPS AROUND AFTER
A TRAINING SESSION WITH
SHELLIE PICK. THE PLAYFUL
BEAR’S LESSONS ARE KEPT
SHORT BECAUSE OF HIS
IMITED ATTENTION SPAN.
KEEPER NICOLE MacCORKLE HOLDS
BEI BEI AS VET DON NEIFFER
CHECKS THE CUB’S HEART RATE.
ONE AND A HALF WEEKS OLD
TWO WEEKS OLD
ONE MONTH OLD
BEI BEI S
LL
Pandas
like to do
somersaults.
BRENDAN MCCABE (CHECKUP); VINCENT NOEL / SHUTTERSTOCK (BUTTER); SMITHSONIAN’S NATIONAL ZOO (BLACK-AND-WHITE IMAGES FROM ENCLOSURE CAMERA, ALL); SKIP BROWN / NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CREATIVE (PEEKING FROM TREE); REBECCA HALE / NG STAFF (LYING ON FLOOR, PEEKING THROUGH DOORWAY, CLIMBING ON MOM, MOUTH OPEN); ANDREW HARNIK / AP PHOTOS (HELD BY KEEPER); SKIP BROWN (LOUNGING ON ROCK); MARTIN WALZ (MAP)
14 AUGUST 2017