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豆豆
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BEI
Panda archive
Bei Bei
贝贝
alive male
Born August 22, 2015
Bei Bei (贝贝, studbook #978) is a male giant panda born on August 22, 2015 at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington D.C. Named by Chinese First Lady Peng Liyuan and US First Lady Michelle Obama, he underwent emergency intestinal surgery in 2017. He returned to China in November 2019 and now resides at the Ya'an Bifengxia Base. His parentage is not documented in publicly available studbook records.
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This page brings together the core facts, timeline, family graph, media, place journey, and related reading for Bei Bei.
Profile snapshot
Quick facts
Birth date
August 22, 2015
Birth place
Smithsonian National Zoological Park
Current location
Ya'an Bifengxia Base of China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda
Status
Alive
Studbook
#978Archive activity
3 updates · 0 media
Narrative
Life story
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Short version
Bei Bei (贝贝, studbook #978) is a male giant panda born on August 22, 2015 at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington D.C. Named by Chinese First Lady Peng Liyuan and US First Lady Michelle Obama, he underwent emergency intestinal surgery in 2017. He returned to China in November 2019 and now resides at the Ya'an Bifengxia Base. His parentage is not documented in publicly available studbook records.
Basic Profile
Bei Bei (Chinese: 贝贝) is a male giant panda born on August 22, 2015, at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, D.C. He holds the global studbook number 978.
His father is Tian Tian (添添, studbook 466) and his mother is Mei Xiang (美香, studbook 461). His siblings include Tai Shan (泰山), Bao Bao (宝宝), and Xiao Qi Ji (小奇迹). A twin brother did not survive.
Naming
On September 25, 2015, Chinese First Lady Peng Liyuan and US First Lady Michelle Obama jointly visited the Smithsonian National Zoo and named the cub “Bei Bei” (贝贝), meaning “precious treasure.”
Life in Washington
Surgery (November 2017)
In November 2017, Bei Bei experienced gastrointestinal issues and stopped eating. An ultrasound revealed a blockage in his small intestine caused by a lemon-sized clump of bamboo. He underwent emergency surgery, recovered well, and was described as “healing very nicely.”
Farewell
His 4th birthday was celebrated on August 22, 2019, with special treats. From September 11-18, 2019, the zoo held farewell events. Visitors could write postcards that would travel with Bei Bei to China.
Return to China
On November 19, 2019, Bei Bei departed Washington aboard a special flight, arriving in Chengdu. After a month of quarantine at the Ya’an Bifengxia Base, he made his public debut on December 30, 2019 in the Hai Gui Yuan (Overseas Returned Pandas) section.
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Theme graph
Themes connected to Bei Bei
This panda is connected to 5 themes in the broader archive graph.
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Gallery
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Connected archive
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Place journey
Current location
Ya'an Bifengxia Base of China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda
Ya'an, China
Bei Bei is currently linked to Ya'an Bifengxia Base of China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda.
Mentioned in archive reading
culture
International Vet Cooperation: Solving Overseas Panda Health Crises
When a panda falls ill in a zoo thousands of miles from China, the response is not local — it is global. Chinese veterinary teams fly to foreign zoos. Foreign keepers travel to China for training. Video consultations connect specialists across continents. This article explores the hidden international medical network that keeps the global panda diaspora healthy — from emergency surgeries to chronic disease management to the delicate art of diagnosing a panda that cannot describe its symptoms.
culture
Pan Pan's Dynasty: The Hero Father Behind 25% of All Captive Pandas
Studbook #001. 130+ descendants. 25% of the global captive population. Pan Pan was the most genetically prolific giant panda in history — rescued from the wild as a cub, he became the founding sire who rescued the captive breeding program from collapse. This is the story of the panda who became a dynasty, the genetic legacy that now defines a quarter of all captive pandas, and the complex management challenge his extraordinary reproductive success created.
culture
Behind Every Name: The Art and Meaning of Naming Giant Pandas
From 'Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan' (symbolizing reunion) to 'Fu Bao' (lucky treasure), every giant panda name carries layers of cultural meaning, political significance, and public sentiment. This article explores the naming traditions, the global naming contests, and how panda nicknames — like Hua Hua's 'Guo Lai' — have become a unique form of modern Chinese internet folk culture.
culture
Smithsonian's 50-Year Panda Story: From Ling-Ling to Xiao Qi Ji
From 1972, when Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing arrived as gifts from Mao Zedong's China, to 2023, when Mei Xiang, Tian Tian, and Xiao Qi Ji returned home, the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington D.C. hosted giant pandas continuously for half a century — the longest unbroken panda presence in the Western world. This article chronicles the science, the celebrity, and the emotional farewells of five decades of American panda diplomacy.
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Sources and references
Information on this page is compiled from conservation institutions, official panda records, media archives, and the wider PandaCommon research workflow.
Primary source types
- Conservation institution records
- Official panda databases
- Research publications and archive reporting
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