"I thought I wouldn't see her in the future
I really feel so lonely."
At 6:15 a.m. this morning, Panda Xiangxiang woke up as usual, but this may be the last time she wakes up at her home at Ueno Zoo.
Under the guidance of the keeper, 5-year-old Xiangxiang obediently walked into the transfer cage and was carried onto the truck with the help of a forklift with a special panda color.
At 7:10, amid the wave of goodbye by the zoo staff, the truck slowly drove away from the panda area, and Xiangxiang embarked on the journey back to China.
Yutaka Fukuda, director of Ueno Zoo, was particularly sentimental, watching Xiangxiang be born and raised, "Xiangxiang is the softest place in our hearts, I want to say thank you, and hope that she will arrive in China safely and contribute to the conservation research of giant pandas." ”
Outside the gate of Ueno Zoo, the cold wind has long been crowded with hundreds of fans who came to see off Xiangxiang, and many people cried into tears.
"Xiangxiang is already a part of our lives, supporting our emotions, and everyone is very sad when that truck passes in front of us." The three girls who came together wiped their tears and said.
"I hope you have a good time in China and be a good mother."
At 9 o'clock, Xiangxiang arrived at Narita Airport, boarded the plane accompanied by breeders and veterinarians, flew for about 5 and a half hours, arrived at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport in the evening, and then was sent to Ya'an Bifeng Gorge Base for quarantine.
01
Japanese fans cry goodbye
Born in June 2017 at Ueno Zoo, Kaka is the first panda to breed naturally in the zoo in 29 years since Yoyo in 1988. His parents were loaned from China for reproductive research purposes, so the ownership of Xiangxiang remains with China.
According to the agreement, Xiangxiang was supposed to return to China when she turned two years old, but after repeated petitions from Tokyoites, the return date was postponed to the end of 2020. Since then, due to the impact of the epidemic, the day of Xiangxiang's return to China has been postponed repeatedly.
In December last year, after the news of Xiangxiang's return to Japan, a large number of Japanese fans came from all over the world to say goodbye to Xiangxiang.
On January 20, a record was set for the longest queue time of four hours, and staff held signs saying "waiting time of more than 240 minutes". Later, in order to avoid overcrowding, it was changed to draw lots to enter the park.
Ueno Zoo has 2,600 places open for incense tickets every day, but more than 62,400 people participated in the lottery, which is equivalent to a probability of 1 in 24. On the last open day, February 19, the winning rate was only 1 in 70.
Even fans who didn't win tickets gathered in large numbers at the entrance of Ueno Zoo, "thinking that I must come because this is the closest to her." ”
Among the lucky ones who saw Xiangxiang, there were many middle-aged and elderly female fans, all of whom came out with red eyes, "Now I am in a very uncomfortable mood, just like my daughter is going to get married." ”
A gray-haired mother-in-law cried in front of the interview camera of Japanese TV, "I feel so lonely when I think that I really won't see Xiangxiang in the future..."
The petition letter left by Kaka was sent to Ueno Zoo like snowflakes from all over Japan, and there was no shortage of fierce words, "Without Kaka, I don't think I will come to Ueno Zoo again."
These letters were concentrated in front of Tadao Niki, president of the Ueno Tourism Association:
"I read every letter and deeply felt everyone's feelings for Xiangxiang. One of the important reasons for returning the panda this time is for breeding, and I hope everyone can support Xiangxiang and watch her start her new life and complete the transformation from a girl to a mother. ”
02
Ueno became a sea of pandas
In order to bid farewell to Xiangxiang, Tokyo's Ueno has almost become a sea of pandas, and the silhouette of "Xiangxiang" can be seen everywhere on the streets.
JR Ueno Station will hold a special "Xiangxiang Photo Exhibition" from February 15, and the collected photos of Xiangxiang will be displayed at the station, and commemorative tickets and small peripherals will be launched.
At Matsuzakaya Department Store Ueno, a 20-meter-long incense banner was hung on the outside of the building, and a photography exhibition was held inside the store, displaying nearly 1,000 photographs.
The nearby shops are full of fragrant peripheral products, dolls, key chains, and panda-shaped desserts, each of which is cute and reveals a faint parting sadness.
The local magazine produces a special issue of the panda "Panda Itself" every month, and this time it collected 8,000 photos of Xiangxiang and integrated a special issue "Xiangxiang Itself", which was quickly sold out.
"Xiangxiang is such a panda with extraordinary charm like a sect leader, and is born with the talent of idol." The editor-in-chief of the magazine said.
"So far, the good memories brought by Xiangxiang will be remembered in our hearts, and when we feel lonely, I hope that these photos can heal everyone's hearts."
This situation occurred in Ueno five years ago. It was December 2017, and Xiangxiang made her first public appearance after turning half a year old, and the first-day viewing quota was only 1 out of 46.
Xiangxiang's parents, Lili (Bili) and Zhenzhen (fairy), went to Japan in 2011 and gave birth to Xiangxiang through natural mating.
Xiangxiang, like her mother, went her own way, showed her free-spirited nature at a very young age, did not have stage fright at all, and raised her hands under the onlookers of fans, she was very star-like, and her cute appearance was loved by everyone.
03
Every panda deserves to be loved
As a precious and endangered species, breeding has always been a top priority for pandas.
Female pandas usually begin to mature sexually at the age of 3/2 to 41/2, and Xiangxiang also showed signs of this in the last year, so getting her to return to China as soon as possible to start nurturing the next generation is on the agenda.
In addition, the three pandas of the "Adventure World" in Shirahama Town, Wakayama Prefecture, Nagamei, Sakurahama and Momohama, will also leave for home tomorrow.
Yongming is 30 years old this year, and he is 90 years old according to human age. In 1994, he came to Japan as a young boy and began his life, spending 29 years in "Adventure World" and being very well taken care of.
He is a heroic father, now the father of 16 giant pandas, and Sakurahama and Momohama, who returned to China together this time, are his twin daughters.
However, not all pandas who stay in the ocean have such good luck as Yongming and Xiangxiang.
Just this month, the tragedy of the death of a giant panda occurred at the Memphis Zoo in the United States. 24-year-old Lele died unexpectedly, and the cause of his death has not yet been clarified.
Lele arrived at the Memphis Zoo in 2003 with another panda, Yaya, which has been repeatedly named the best zoo in the United States.
However, in the past few years, tourists have repeatedly exposed the two pandas as thin and dull coats, and in 2021, Chinese experts went to check the panda and found many health problems such as parasites and broken teeth.
In addition, an investigation by the Society for the Protection of Animals found that the Memphis Zoo could not provide enough bamboo for the two pandas for food, and the quality of the bamboo was far from the requirements.
The panda hall in the park is too small, rich and monotonous, which is not conducive to the physical and mental health of pandas. Both Lele and Yaya exhibited stereotypical behavior, circling around the tree trunk and even showing signs of self-harm.
Local conservation groups and fans petitioned to send the pandas back to China, but the Memphis Zoo turned a blind eye to 80,000 signatures until the tragedy finally happened.
As China's "diplomatic representative", the panda is a messenger to spread friendship, and like Xiangxiang, you can also harvest full of love in a foreign country and become a family member of the local people, which is what everyone is happy to see.
I hope that every giant panda living overseas can be carefully cared for and live a healthy and happy life.
Text, Editor/Cardi C
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