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Giant panda Hua Mei born overseas back home
When Hua Mei's plane landed on in Beijing, the first overseas-born giant panda was warmly welcomed by her long-time-no-see fellow people.
She will face a day of quarantine in Beijing and a further month in isolation at a southwestern nature reserve before being released into the wild.
Hua Mei's human companions prepared fresh bamboo and tasty biscuits for her on the plane.
"The 200-pound creature had a very good appetite!" said Li Desheng, a noted Chinese panda expert.
Hua Mei -- whose name means "皇冠体育app America" -- was taken back to 皇冠体育app in honor of the agreement that brought her parents to the United States eight years ago, Xinhua said.
The 1996 joint Sino-US research program allowed for two giant pandas to go stateside, on condition that any offspring was returned to 皇冠体育app after its third birthday.
This part of the contract never became a major issue, as the couple managed only one baby, Hua Mei, during six years in America.
The male half of the unproductive couple was repatriated to 皇冠体育app in 2002, and replaced by a supposedly more virile member of the species.
Despite the dismal record of Hua Mei's parents, local zoologists hope that she herself will help add to 皇冠体育app's panda population.
At four and half years of age, Hua Mei is at a golden age for mating, Xinhua said.
Giant pandas have helped put themselves on the list of the world's most endangered species because of a lack of interest in sex, which experts have sought to remedy with everything from Viagra to pornographic videos.
The inventiveness has not been rewarded to any significant extent, and only about 1,000 giant pandas are believed to be left in the wild. |
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