End of a Black-and-White Era

Well, today is the day.  The crates are being loaded and the plane is taking off for China.  For the first time in fifty years (excepting one gap year following the death of Hsing Hsing), the Smithsonian National Zoo will have no giant pandas.  Nor are there immediate plans for additional black-and-white bears to be shipped over from China, though that does seem to be the zoo's intention.  By sunset, the only giant pandas left in the US will be those at Zoo Atlanta - and they'll be heading back next year.  We've gone from a peak of four US zoos with pandas when I was entering the field out of college to none.

Now, there are plenty of folks who won't be sad to see the bears go.  Giant pandas have always stirred up complicated feelings among members of the zoo community.  They take up a lot of money and staff resources that could go to other species, some of which are in much greater need of conservation.  Instead of the lion's share, perhaps it would be fair to talk about the panda's share.  That price tag that they command - a million dollars a year per panda - also raises some moral qualms with folks, as there are people who, justifiably, are wary of sending money into the pockets of the PRC, what with it's  history of human rights abuses and environmental practices.

I've seen pandas at all four of the recent holding facilities in the US, including two that no longer house them.  I was okay with San Diego not having pandas anymore - they certainly have enough going on there.  Same with Memphis (I bet they don't miss that circus) and Atlanta.  There's plenty of other species that they can work with.  But National... that one hits me a little different.  It's the history and legacy there that speaks to me - pandas are practically icons of not just the zoo, but the city itself.  Presidents come and go, I thought, but pandas were forever.  But it seems they aren't.

I count myself very lucky that I've had the chance to see the giant pandas at the National Zoo so many times.  The zoo will still be an incredible place full of incredible animals, some of which honestly interest me a lot more than a sleepy black-and-white bear.  Still... it's going to just feel a little empty without them.