The San Diego Zoo's giant panda cub, Yun Zi, walked on all fours for the first time this week. The 18-week-old, 17-pound cub is said to have a mind of his own. Here he was motivated by a pile of toys that took him away from Meg Sutherland-Smith, DVM, veterinary clinical operations manager at the California zoo.
(Image: San Diego Zoo)
Yun Zi, which means "Sun of Cloud" (his mother's name is White Cloud), is the fifth giant panda and the second male born at the San Diego Zoo. Only a handful of other zoos in the United States, including Zoo Atlanta and the National Zoo in D.C., have giant pandas. In most cases, captive breeding is done through artificial insemination, but the San Diego Zoo has had success with natural births since 2003.
Yun Zi is so active these days that he nearly walked out the door during his latest medical exam. Here he is in an earlier exam before he learned to walk. As you can see, he was already an impressive crawler, eager to show off his new teeth.
The baby giant panda isn't allowed outside yet, but you can watch him in real time via the zoo's panda cam.
Tags: Animal Behavior, Animals, Mammals, Zoos and Aquariums
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