Washington (AFP)
The giant panda Bei Bei of the Washington Zoo celebrated his four years on Thursday, his last birthday in the United States before leaving for China.
For the occasion, the white and black plantigrade tasted a red cake, yellow and blue "panda taste", a ceremony broadcast live for the curious through the "Panda Cam", webcams placed at different angles of his enclosures, filming Bei Bei and his parents 24 hours a day.
Like her sister Bao Bao, and their older brother Tai Shan, Bei Bei will soon be handed over to China under a loan agreement. Parents Mei Xiang and Tian Tian will stay in Washington until at least 2020.
Officials of the zoo have not yet announced the exact date of the move, but have assured that it will take place "in the coming months".
In September 2015, Bei Bei received the visit of the first Chinese ladies Peng Liyuan and American Michelle Obama, who had unveiled her name on this occasion. Bei Bei means "precious" in Mandarin.
© 2019 AFP