Mei Lan, a giant panda born in the United States, greeted the Chinese public Monday, almost 40 days after her arrival at a breeding base in southwest China's Sichuan Province.
The 3-year-old female stepped out her new home, the No. 2 "villa" at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, at 10 a.m. into the glare of flashbulbs.
Mei Lan became irritable and lost her appetite on arrival, but she had adapted to the diet, climate and environment after about a month in quarantine, said Li Mingxi, the base's animal management specialist.
"She is making progress in understanding Sichuan dialect," Li said.
Mei Lan, who was born and raised at Zoo Atlanta, used to be a fussy eater, but she had gained 6 kg weight in the past 40 days, Li said.
"She only ate high fiber biscuits at the beginning. We had to smear honey -- a favorite with giant pandas -- on her new food, the Chinese 'wotou' (steamed bread made with corn and sorghum), as well as provide her with a wide selection of bamboo."
The center would arrange several male pandas for her to choose when she was sexually mature at 4 years. "Mei Lan must be a good mother," Li said.
"I've kept a close eye on Mei Lan since she was born in 2006. This time I will be with her for two months and record her daily life in my blog," said Lin Weizhou, one of her fans.
"I hope she can have an ideal partner and several cubs," said the 64-year-old retired journalist who came from Shanghai to see the panda.
Tai Shan, a 4-year-old male who arrived in Sichuan along with Mei Lan on Feb. 5, met the public on March 9 at the Ya'an Bifeng Gorge Breeding Base of the Wolong Giant Panda Protection and Research Center.
Only one week after his arrival, Tai Shan began to eat the Chinese 'wotou' and local bamboo, and had gained 3 kg there, said Li Desheng, the center's deputy director.
The panda could sit, squat or stand on instructions of his keeper, and undergo health checks without sedatives, Li said. "He can understand some Sichuan dialect."
Tai Shan was supposed to return to China at 2 years old. The Chinese government agreed to postpone his return twice in 2007 and 2009 at the request of the National Zoo.
Tai Shan's father Tian Tian, 13, and mother Mei Xiang, 12, are due to return to China in December next year.
According to the agreements reached by Chinese and U.S. authorities, giant pandas are only loaned to the United States for scientific studies, and all their cubs must also be sent back to China.
Thirteen Chinese giant pandas are in four zoos in the United States.
Giant pandas, known for being sexually inactive, are among the world's most endangered animals.
About 1,600 giant pandas live in China's wild, mostly in Sichuan and the northwestern provinces of Shaanxi and Gansu. Another 290 are in captive-breeding programs worldwide, mainly in China.
