'Handsome' panda and playful partner captivate Australian zoo-goers

For Australian photographer Leighton Cassebohm, visiting the zoo in Adelaide is a monthly affair.

Taking shots of the giant pandas is a "picture perfect" opportunity, he said.

"They're so interactive, checking out everything," Cassebohm said. "You can see them up close, and that's the best part. It's a good little habitat… a great spot to be in."

Visitors are forming lines to see Xing Qiu and his female companion Yi Lan — just as crowds gathered for 15 years at the zoo to watch the duo's predecessors, Wang Wang and Fu Ni.

"It's a whole new thing for us again," Cassebohm said.

Xing Qiu, 4, and Yi Lan, 3, arrived in Adelaide late last year from Southwest China's Sichuan province. The pair will call the capital of South Australia state their home for a decade, continuing a joint research program that saw the city's zoo hosting Wang Wang and Fu Ni, the only giant panda pair in the Southern Hemisphere from 2009 to 2024.

Delighting visitors and zookeepers alike, Xing Qiu and Yi Lan are now settling comfortably into their separate, adjacent enclosures as their stay Down Under hits the half-year mark, with tourism, people-to-people exchanges, and conservation cooperation poised to expand during the bears' stay.

"We've learned a lot about giant pandas, and we now use that knowledge and experience to work with Yi Lan and Xing Qiu," said zookeeper Arliah Hayward, who has been at Adelaide Zoo for nearly 16 years.

"We're still learning so much about them, no day is the same with Yi Lan and Xing Qiu, or, I think, any giant panda," Hayward said adding they are always "very cute".

The zoo describes Xing Qiu as "a very handsome panda with a calm yet lively temperament. His name, meaning 'autumn star', reflects the season of his birth and the starry night sky that illuminated his arrival into the world".

Yi Lan is "known for her beauty and playful nature. Her name, translating to 'idly blissful', perfectly captures her charming personality".

The two pandas were chosen as "the ideal pair for Adelaide Zoo, not only because of their ability to thrive in Adelaide's environment but also due to their potential as a future breeding pair", it said.

"We've been pleased to see Xing Qiu and Yi Lan settle in and adapt so well to their new environment here at Adelaide Zoo," the zoo's acting director Ian Smith said.

"Our focus remains on ensuring their welfare through carefully tailored care and habitat management, guided closely by our Chinese partners to meet their specific needs.

"As a team deeply committed to animal welfare, we prioritize their health and well-being every step of the way, working collaboratively to provide an environment that supports both their physical and behavioral needs."

The wild population of giant pandas in China has significantly increased over the past four decades, growing from about 1,100 in the 1980s to an estimated 1,900, with the global captive population of giant pandas reaching 757 late last year, according to China's National Forestry and Grassland Administration.