Dutch-born panda cub Lang Yue to move to China this month

Lang Yue, the giant panda cub born at Ouwehands Dierenpark in Rhenen, Utrecht, two years ago, will leave for China at the end of October, the zoo has said.

The zoo agreed with the China Wildlife Conservation Association that giant pandas born outside China must move there before their fourth birthday, the zoo said in a statement.

Lang Yue, who was born on July 12, 2024, no longer depends on her mother for food. In the wild, giant panda cubs stay with their mother for about two years before living alone.

In China she will join the national breeding programme for the species, and the zoo hopes she will eventually have cubs of her own. Ouwehands zoo is also planning a farewell ceremony.

Her parents, Wu Wen and Xing Ya, will stay in Rhenen. They arrived from China in 2017 as part of a conservation partnership between the zoo and China, broadcaster NOS reported. The zoo is hoping the pair will breed again.

Lang Yue is the second panda born in the Netherlands. Her older sister Fan Xing, born in May 2020, was sent to China in September 2023.