Panda Updates- Friday, May 27

We’re in that time of year again: bamboo shoot season! The Panda Care Team and the pandas are all pumped about it.

Bamboo shoots are the young, nutrient-dense, soft part of bamboo when it first sprouts out of the ground. The pandas love bamboo shoots and eat until they are so stuffed, they nap. When it’s possible, the Panda Care Team will stop feeding out bamboo stalks and will switch over to only feeding bamboo shoots. This lasts for about a month, and is an easy transition since this would represent the pandas’ feeding patterns in the wild.

On your next visit to the Zoo (or on PandaCam), you may see the giant pandas and red panda with bamboo shoots – a real favorite for all of us!

(photo: Trish J.)

Trish J.
Keeper II, Mammals