Mei Xiang

Basic Profile

Mei Xiang (Chinese: 美香, studbook number 473) is a female giant panda born on July 22, 1998 at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda (CCRCGP) Hetaoping Base. Her mother is Xue Xue (studbook 321), a wild-born female rescued from the Qinling Mountains. Mei Xiang is one of the most famous giant pandas in the world, having spent over two decades at the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, D.C.

Family

Mei Xiang’s mother is Xue Xue (studbook 321), a wild-born female panda. Her father is not recorded in the studbook.

Mei Xiang has four surviving offspring with Tian Tian (studbook 458):

• Tai Shan (泰山, studbook 585), male, born July 9, 2005 at Smithsonian National Zoo. Returned to China on February 5, 2010. Now at CCRCGP Ya’an Bifengxia Base.
• Bao Bao (宝宝, studbook 909), female, born August 23, 2013. Returned to China on February 22, 2017. Now at CCRCGP Dujiangyan Base.
• Bei Bei (贝贝, studbook 1080), male, born August 22, 2015. Returned to China on November 21, 2019.
• Xiao Qi Ji (小奇迹, studbook 1318), male, born August 21, 2020. Returned to China with his parents on November 9, 2023.

Mei Xiang also gave birth to a cub named Ao Ao in 2012 who died shortly after birth, and a stillborn twin in 2013.

Life Journey

Early Life in China

Mei Xiang was born at the Hetaoping Base of CCRCGP in Sichuan. She spent her early years at the center before being selected for the Sino-US cooperative research program.

Move to the United States

On December 6, 2000, Mei Xiang and Tian Tian arrived at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, D.C. as “China-US friendship envoys.” They were part of a 10-year cooperative research agreement focused on giant panda reproductive biology, behavior, and conservation.

Motherhood at Smithsonian

Mei Xiang’s first cub Tai Shan was born on July 9, 2005, following artificial insemination. Tai Shan became a sensation, drawing record crowds. After a second cub (Ao Ao) died in 2012, Mei Xiang successfully gave birth to Bao Bao on August 23, 2013, Bei Bei on August 22, 2015, and Xiao Qi Ji on August 21, 2020.

In 2020, at age 22, Mei Xiang became the second-oldest giant panda in the world to give birth, using frozen semen from Tian Tian collected in 2016. This was the first successful panda pregnancy in the US using only frozen semen.

Return to China

On November 9, 2023, Mei Xiang, Tian Tian, and Xiao Qi Ji returned to China aboard a FedEx Boeing 777 “Panda Express.” They landed at Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport. Mei Xiang now resides at the CCRCGP Dujiangyan Base in the senior panda care facility, where she receives specialized geriatric care for age-related conditions including arthritis and hypertension.