Thousands of Japanese fans have bid a tearful farewell to two pandas that made their final public appearance at Tokyo’s Ueno Zoo on Saturday before returning to China for medical treatment.
The pair, Ri Ri and Shin Shin, are the parents of Xiang Xiang who returned home last year.
More than 2,000 visitors, many wearing T-shirts and carrying items decorated by panda motifs, queued outside the zoo for hours before opening. Some said they camped out overnight to secure their chance.
The giant pandas, both 19 years old, arrived at the Ueno Zoo in 2011.
Although they are on lease until 2026, Japan and China agreed to their return home as the ageing couple need treatment for high blood pressure, according to the zoo.
Hirono Sasaki, who had waited to enter the zoo since 5am, was in tears.
“They were always my source of comfort so I’m feel extremely sad,” she said. “I loved seeing Ri Ri climbing trees in her old enclosure. I hope she can climb trees again when she is back in China.”
After their hours-long wait, visitors were given only a few minutes inside their hut to view the black-and-white animals. Lucky ones could get a glimpse of them nibbling on bamboo branches but others could only catch them during their naps.
China sends pandas abroad as a sign of good will but maintains ownership over the animals and any cubs they produce. The animals are native to south-western China and are an unofficial national mascot.
Pandas, which reproduce rarely in the wild and rely on a diet of bamboo, remain among the world’s most threatened species. An estimated 1,800 pandas live in the wild while another 500 are in zoos or reserves, mostly in Sichuan.
