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Blog Update
Fueling Up
Posted at 10:53 am August 10, 2009 by Suzanne Hall
Bai Yun and her littlest panda are doing very well. We continue to see the pattern of feeding, grooming, and resting that is typical of this early postpartum period. As always, Bai Yun is very responsive to her cub’s vocalizations. Although this cub is not as quiet as Zhen Zhen, it isn’t particularly fussy, which is great news for its mother.
One of our newer keepers, experiencing a panda cub for the first time, has marveled at the changes in Bai Yun since the birth. Juli remarked that Bai Yun is normally a bear “with a lot of attitude,” and she is amazed to see her so totally devoted to, and seemingly at the beck and call of, this tiny little creature in her den. It’s as if someone has flipped a switch, and our normally independent panda has morphed into “mothering mode” instantly, and completely.
Bai Yun can remain so focused on her cub, foregoing food and drink, for only so long. Mother bears of some species are able to den up, give birth, and manage the initial rearing of their young in the den without eating or drinking. This fasting state can last for months with polar, brown, or black bears. They manage this by fueling their metabolism – and lactation – with their stored fat, thus protecting their muscle from wasting away during this time without caloric intake. Pandas, like other bears, have many of the same biological mechanisms and drives as do hibernating species, but they are unable to put on the fat layer in the same way as other bears. Bamboo just isn’t as caloric as seal or salmon or berries. Fortunately for the panda, it isn’t as seasonal, either.
So Bai Yun will ultimately need to leave her very young infant behind when she ventures out for a drink or a meal. In 2005, her first drink was 2 days post partum, and in 2003 and 2007 it was on day 3. In 2009, Bai Yun left her den for a drink in the wee hours of 8 August, entering day 3. Her foray was brief – 3 minutes in total – but her cub vocalized nearly continuously in her absence, so she returned immediately and tended to it. Later that morning, she ventured out again for another drink. As of this writing she hasn’t yet left again, but we can anticipate this becoming a regular occurrence.
When will she eat? In 2003, she fed on day 5 postpartum; in 2005, on day 8; in 2007, on day 9. It’s likely she will continue to forgo food for another few days yet. Stay tuned to the panda cam to see if you can spot her running out for a bite!
Suzanne Hall is a senior research technician for the San Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research.
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