The first and only panda cub ever born in the United States received a name based on the the star of the movie Kung Fu Panda — Po. Jack Black, who voiced Po in the film, stood by during a naming ceremony at the Atlanta Zoo.
No word if either of he or the panda can perform martial arts, though the photographs do not look promising.
Dreamworks funded the naming ceremony to promote Kung Fu Panda 2, set for release May 26. Though it might seem tacky for a zoo to make such a blatant plug, if it helps out an endangered species, why not?
Raymond King, president and CEO of the Atlanta Zoo, says Jack Black "has already helped to bring the importance of saving this species to a new generation of conservationists."
It’s easy to get kids excited about wildlife conservation when it comes in a cuddly ball of black-and-white fur. Besides, this adorable species needs all the help it can get! Panda breeding in captivity have had only limited success.
Female pandas are fertile for a very short period of time, and males have shown such little interest in mating that desperate researchers tried showing “panda porn.” Little Po’s birth is a landmark achievement for American zoologists.
What baby animals can Houstonians hope for this spring? CultureMap talked to Houston Zoo rep Brian Hill to bring you the latest on baby animal news. Hill says that while naming contests have happened in the past, normally the caretakers of the expectant mother name the newborns in Houston.
Baby Chicks:
These aren't your average farm hens. Attwater's praire chickens are a critically endangered subspecies native to Texas’ coastal prairies. The brightly-colored males attract females by a loud call known as “booming.”
So far the breeding facility at NASA’s Johnson Space Center has experienced quite a boom itself, hatching 80 birds last year, which were then released to the designated reserves for animals. While they may not be as cuddly as pandas, we’re glad the birds are making a booming comeback.
Orangutans Going Ape:
Romance is in the air for Houston orangutans Kelly and Doc, and mating activity has been reported. However, don’t expect a baby ape any time soon. (Side note: orangutans are apes, not monkeys. Monkeys have tails.)
Much like humans, orangutans have a gestation period of eight and a half to ninth months. Stay tuned for delivery date estimates.
A Long Awaited Giraffe
If you thought nine months was long, try 15. When an expectant mother giraffe births her calf this spring she will have been pregnant for 15 months. Still, this doesn’t come close to an elephant’s 22-month pregnancy.
We suggest Katy native Renée Zellweger make an appearance at the baby giraffe’s debut. Like a giraffe, she’s graceful in that awkwardly thin, squinty eyed sort of way.
Green Tree Pythons
Herpetologists (zoologists specializing in amphibians and reptiles — not, ahem, anything else) happily welcomed a clutch of 18 baby green tree pythons. The species is native to New Guinea and northern Australia, but the momma python heralds from nearby.
The Houston Zoo acquired her when Moody Gardens evacuated some animals during Hurricane Ike.
New green tree pythons are no small thing. They'll get large pretty quick.
