Mei Lan (; meaning: "American Orchid" or "Beautiful Orchid") is a male
giant panda. He was born at
Zoo Atlanta
Zoo Atlanta (sometimes referred as Atlanta Zoo) is an Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) accredited zoological park in Atlanta, Georgia. The current president and CEO of Zoo Atlanta is Raymond B. King.
History
Zoo Atlanta was founded in ...
in
Atlanta, Georgia
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
on September 6, 2006, after his mother's,
Lun Lun, record-setting 35-hour labor.
Originally identified by zoo staffers as female, Mei Lan was determined to be male by staff in China at the Chengdu Research Base of Panda Breeding.
He is the first offspring of Lun Lun and
Yang Yang, who are also the parents of
Xi Lan, Po, and two pairs of twins, namely Mei Lun and Mei Huan, and Ya Lun and Xi Lun. Mei Lan was relocated to
Chengdu
Chengdu (, ; simplified Chinese: 成都; pinyin: ''Chéngdū''; Sichuanese pronunciation: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: ), alternatively romanized as Chengtu, is a sub-provincial city which serves as the capital of the Chinese pro ...
,
China on February 4, 2010.
Naming
Mei Lan was named at a naming ceremony held on December 15, 2006, following the Chinese tradition of naming panda cubs when they are about 100 days old.
He received ''person of the year'' from Atlanta's
The Sunday Paper on December 24, 2006. In so doing, he defeated Atlanta
human
Humans (''Homo sapiens'') are the most abundant and widespread species of primate, characterized by bipedalism and exceptional cognitive skills due to a large and complex brain. This has enabled the development of advanced tools, cultu ...
s
Michael Vick
Michael Dwayne Vick (born June 26, 1980) is a former American football quarterback. Regarded as having transformed the quarterback position with his rushing abilities, he is the NFL leader in quarterback rushing yards and was the league's firs ...
,
Cynthia McKinney,
Dallas Austin
Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and film producer.
Biography
Early life
During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfirmed events in ...
,
Sonny Perdue
George Ervin "Sonny" Perdue III (born December 20, 1946) is an American veterinarian, businessman, politician, and university administrator who served as the 31st United States Secretary of Agriculture from 2017 to 2021. He previously served as t ...
, and
Bernard Marcus
Bernard "Bernie" Marcus (born May 12, 1929) is an American billionaire businessman. He co-founded The Home Depot and was the company's first CEO, and chairman until retiring in 2002.
Early life and education
Bernard Marcus was born to Russian Jew ...
.
''Mei Lan'', which
transliterates as "American Orchid" or "Beautiful Orchid", was submitted by
WSB-TV
WSB-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Atlanta, Georgia, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is the flagship television property of locally based Cox Media Group, which has owned the station since its inception, and is sister to ...
, the Atlanta ABC affiliate. The name was chosen from a public online poll on ajc.com after it won 22% of the votes.
Many of the names in the poll contain the words "beautiful", "orchid", "peach" or "moon" that are often given to girls in China, because Mei Lan was originally identified as female.
Repatriation
Mei Lan, like other zoo-born giant pandas in the U.S., contractually belongs to
China. He left for China on February 4, 2010, on the same flight as
Tai Shan from the
National Zoo in Washington D.C. His new home is at the
Chengdu Panda Base, where both his parents were born.
References
External links
Zoo Atlanta official site
{{Authority control
Individual giant pandas
2006 animal births
Individual animals in China
Individual animals in the United States