The 15-week-old giant panda cub at the San Diego Zoo was named Xiao Liwu, or "Little Gift'' in English, in a ceremony today.
The public weighed in via nearly 35,000 votes on the zoo's website, choosing Xiao Liwu over five other names that had made the final cut, according to the zoo.
The cub was born on July 29 to mother Bai Yun, which means "white cloud,'' and father Gao Gao, which means "big big.'' He is Bai Yun's sixth cub and her fifth with Gao Gao. The pair mated in March, zoo officials said.
Ron Swaisgood, with the zoo's giant panda team, said Xiao Liwu was conceived during a violent hailstorm, but has developed a peaceful personality.
"When the veterinarians come to gather him up to do their exams, he's very cooperative,'' Swaisgood said. "He's a bit on the small side, but he's very healthy, very strong and vibrant.''
The naming ceremony at the zoo's Hunte Amphitheater began with a traditional Chinese dance and ended with an unveiling of a large photograph of Xiao Liwu, with his name captioned on the bottom with English and Chinese lettering.
Naming a giant panda after it has been alive 100 days is a Chinese tradition observed by zoo officials.
The other finalists, culled from more than 7,000 name suggestions received in September, were:
-- Qi Ji, which means Miracle;
-- Yu Di, which means Raindrop;
-- Da Hai, which means Big Ocean or Big Sea;
-- Yong Er, which means Brave Son; and
-- Shui Long, which means Water Dragon.
Bai Yun was nearly 21 years old when she delivered her newest cub, making her the oldest giant panda known to give birth.
Bai Yun's other offsprings are Yun Zi, meaning "son of cloud;'' Zhen Zhen, or "precious;'' Su Lin, or "a little bit of something very cute;'' Mei Sheng, or "born in the USA or beautiful life;'' and Hua Mei, or "China USA.''
The giant pandas at the zoo are on loan from the Chinese government, which has the option of calling the black-and-white bears back to their native country after they reach the age of 3. Only the newest cub and Yun Zi, who turned 3 in August, remain at the San Diego Zoo today.
The local zoo is one of four in the U.S. that participate in the loan program. For a hefty fee to China, these zoos get to study the critically
endangered species up close and help with breeding. At the same time, the pandas make them highly popular attractions.
Only around 1,600 pandas are believed to be left in the wild in China, in part because of deforestation and the expansion of farming. The bamboo-
eating panda has lost much of its forest habitat in the mountainous areas of southwest China to roads and railroads, according to the nonprofit World Wildlife Fund.
