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An An and Ke Ke, the two five-year-old giant pandas gifted by the Central Government to Hong Kong and welcomed to the city last September, were introduced to each other for the first time in Ocean Park via a grid gate in their connecting rooms behind-the-scenes, as they experienced their first panda breeding season in Hong Kong.
This protected interaction approach enables An An and Ke Ke to familiarise themselves with each other through scent, sound and vision, helping them gradually build comfort and connection.
Six protected introduction sessions were arranged for An An and Ke Ke over the past week. The two pandas met in a relaxed atmosphere, during which Ke Ke displayed curiosity towards An An, looking and sniffing towards the next room to explore An An’s scent. An An, on the other hand, took some time to observe his new friend, then returned to focusing on eating like his usual self of a big foodie. The two giant pandas both displayed stable behaviours during these introduction sessions, while An An’s interest level was not enough to proceed with natural mating attempts.
Female giant pandas will usually experience a brief seasonal peak oestrus of 24 to 72 hours, occurring once a year in spring from February to May. Ke Ke had displayed some signs of oestrus since the mid of April, such as scent marking, restlessness and decrease in appetite. Last week, typical peak oestrus behaviours emerged. These include tail lifting, backward walking and frequent bleating.
Given An An and Ke Ke’s recent relocation to Hong Kong, Ocean Park plans to continue implementing similar introductions for the next breeding season, enabling the pandas to accustom to each other’s presence and grow their connection gradually, while animal caretakers closely observe and evaluate their behaviour in the next breeding seasons to determine the next steps.
Encouragingly, An An has gained 8kg since his arrival in September 2024 — now weighing 138kg — indicating good health. Ke Ke has maintained a stable, healthy weight of around 100kg. Ocean Park’s animal care team will continue to monitor Ke Ke’s behaviours and focus on supporting her recovery in appetite after the oestrus period.
As for the Park’s other resident pandas, Ying Ying remains dedicated to caring for her cubs and is not expected to enter oestrus, thus she will not mate with Le Le for the time being.
Ocean Park remains committed to panda conservation, boasting a number of achievements, including welcoming Hong Kong's first panda twins with Ying Ying, the oldest panda on record to successfully give birth for the first time. The Park will continue to keep everyone updated on the pandas' progress, so stay tuned.
