Un-bear-ably cute: The giant panda twin cubs making their debut appearance to the media at Ocean Park. — AP
PANDA craze has gripped Hong Kong once again as residents compete to name the territory’s first locally-born giant panda cubs who just turned six months old.
The competition to name the twin cubs, born on Aug 15 last year, launched yesterday following a celebratory ceremony attended by Hong Kong leader John Lee and other officials at Ocean Park, the theme park that houses the twins, their parents and two other giant pandas that arrived from mainland China last year.Residents can submit their suggestions via the park’s website.
Lee said the southern Chinese city now has the largest number of pandas in captivity outside of mainland China, and the cubs’ names would be announced in the first half of this year.
The pair, currently identified as the “Elder Sister” and the “Little Brother”, will make their public debut today and meet visitors for five hours daily. Those who want to enjoy time with the cubs outside regular visiting hours, before the park opens, can pay HK$1,500 (RM855).
During a media preview session yesterday, the male cub laid on a swing playing with a tree stick before a carer placed him on a slide. The female cub explored the enclosure before climbing onto a tree.
The panda carers said the female cub seemed more active than her male twin. She loves climbing the tree inside the enclosure and resting there while her brother likes to wander around and play with the plants.
The male cub has been marked with two purple food-colouring spots on his back to distinguish him from his sister.
The birth of the baby pandas last year made their mother Ying Ying the world’s oldest first-time panda mom.
Their popularity on social media also raised hopes for the city’s tourism boost. Officials have encouraged businesses to capitalise on the panda craze to seize opportunities in what some lawmakers have dubbed the “panda economy”.
Ocean Park’s chairman Paulo Pong told reporters on Saturday that the park already saw income increases over the Christmas period and Lunar New Year holiday, alongside an uptake in overseas tourists, after the newly arrived pandas from mainland China started to greet the public.
“We’re turning the page and believe the pandas are definitely helping the park’s income,” he said, adding that raising pandas was about animal conservation and education instead of “just a money exercise”. — AP
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