Shanghai Wildlife Park is preparing to welcome a special visitor tomorrow night - American-born panda Mei Sheng, who is returning to the motherland to find a bride.
The four-year-old panda will stay in the city for one night on his way to Wolong in Sichuan Province, where his mother and father were born.
He is the first panda born by natural mating outside China, and will be escorted by experts from San Diego Zoo, where he has spent all his life, and from Wolong Panda Research Center.
The 20-hour flight from Los Angeles to Shanghai is Mei Sheng's first, according to Sinotrans Air Transportation Development Co Ltd, which is transporting the panda.
Mei Sheng is being flown in a large iron cage stocked with his favorite apple and water, and is due to land at Pudong International Airport about 7pm tomorrow.
Shanghai Customs officials will escort him to Shanghai Wildlife Park, where he will have a single room and his favorite food. There he will be able to recover from the flight before his next trip to Wolong on Wednesday.
"If Mei Sheng is in good mood after landing, we'll send him to Wolong on Wednesday as scheduled. But if he's upset by the long travel, or shows signs of bad temper or poor appetite, he'll stay in the park for a longer period for a break," said Zhang Yuan, general manager of Sinotrans' East China branch.
Once he reaches Wolong, Mei Sheng will be in quarantine for a month to monitor any signs of infectious diseases and keep an eye on his mental state, according to Wolong Panda Research Center.
The center said it will introduce Mei Sheng to a mate who isn't related to him, and the ideal "wedding date" may fall between about March and May next year.
Born at San Diego Zoo on August 19, 2003, Mei Sheng's name means "born in America" or "a beautiful life" in Chinese.
He's been very popular among zoo visitors since he made his public debut when he was six months old.
Mei Sheng's mother Bai Yun went to the United States in 1996 while his father Gao Gao went in 2001. Before giving natural birth to Mei Sheng, Bai Yun had a daughter named Hua Mei by artificial insemination.
Hua Mei was the first overseas-born panda to return to China in 1994. Since then, she has given birth to three pairs of twins.
Source: Shanghai Daily
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