The twin giant pandas “Rui Bao” and “Hui Bao,” born in South Korea, celebrated their second birthday on July 7th. Everland, the amusement park where they live, held a special birthday celebration for them.
To mark the occasion, Everland prepared a large birthday cake made of bamboo for the twin pandas. Their birthday gifts included a refreshing ice bed and various enrichment toys made from bamboo. According to Everland, the twins weighed just 180 grams and 140 grams respectively at birth. Now, they each weigh nearly 70 kilograms.
Kang Chul-won, a panda keeper at Everland, said during the celebration that this would be the last birthday Rui Bao and Hui Bao spend with their mother, Ai Bao. Based on panda growth patterns, cubs typically begin independent living between 18 months and 2 years of age. After undergoing gradual adaptation training, Rui Bao and Hui Bao are expected to make their solo public debut in a new exhibit this September.
A citizen named Kim Hye-won, who traveled from Seoul to attend the celebration, said: “Over the past two years, Rui Bao and Hui Bao have grown up healthy and strong, and I feel proud of them. I’ve heard they’ll soon start living independently, so I hope Ai Bao, Rui Bao, and Hui Bao can happily stay together and continue to grow healthily before then.”
Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Dai Bing also visited Everland that day. He stated that giant pandas are China’s national treasure and serve as a bridge of friendship between China and other countries. He expressed gratitude to the keepers for their dedicated care of the “Bao Family,” and said he was delighted to see the pandas growing up healthy, active, and adorable. He hopes the Bao Family will continue to contribute uniquely to the friendship between China and South Korea.
Rui Bao and Hui Bao were born on July 7, 2023, and are the first twin giant pandas born in South Korea to the panda couple Le Bao and Ai Bao.