Loaned Panda to arrive in Singapore on 6th Sep 2012

Pandas Jia Jia and Kai Kai bound for Singapore will arrive on Sept 6, Wildlife Reserves Singapore (WRS) announced on Wednesday.

In the announcement, WRS also said that the public can expect to visit the panda pair in December after they have completed a month-long quarantine in Singapore and have been well-familiarised with their new home at the River Safari.

Earlier, ST had reported that the opening was expected to be in November.

The pandas, which are on a 10-year loan from the China Wildlife Conservation Association (CWCA) to Singapore, were initially meant to arrive in March but their arrival was delayed because more changes had to be made to their $8.5 million enclosure.

Director of CWCA, Mr Zhong Yi, told members of the media on Tuesday that representatives made a visit of the 1,225 sq m panda enclosure in June and found everything in order.

Mr Zhong said they are currently being quarantined in Ya'an sanctuary in Sichuan province, China. This phase began early this month.

The pandas will travel on a charter flight sponsored by Singapore Airlines and are expected to touch down at Changi Airport at 8.20am on Sept 6.

To ensure that the giant pandas are comfortable during their five-hour flight, the aircraft’s temperature will be set to the bears’ natural habitat conditions and ‘in-flight meals’ will also be provided in the form of bamboo, fruit and water, WRS said in a media statement. They will also be accompanied by a team of Chinese zookeepers and veterinarians.

After landing, the giant pandas will receive a celebratory welcome at the airport and will then be moved into a temperature-controlled truck for their journey to River Safari. There, the pandas will be moved into their den block to begin their quarantine for one month.

After the quarantine process, they will be released into their exhibit to explore and familiarise themselves with their new surroundings before going on public display.

The pandas will be housed at the Yangtze River zone of the upcoming River Safari, along with other endangered wildlife from China such as the giant salamander and the red panda, said WRS.

"After many months of careful planning and preparation, we are happy to welcome the giant pandas to Singapore and to their new home at River Safari. The arrival of Kai Kai and Jia Jia marks the start of an exciting panda research and development opportunity and we look forward to working closely with the Chinese experts to enhance overall understanding on giant panda conservation," said Ms Claire Chiang, Chairman of WRS.

Singapore will be the ninth country to receive giant pandas from China since 1994.

The pandas are sponsored by CapitaLand.