Goodbye to the heroic pandas of the San Diego Zoo

These bears saved their species

Panda.
(Image credit: Illustrated | Ken Bohn/San Diego Zoo via Getty Images, sanchesnet1/iStock, soyonillust/iStock)

It felt like the entire state of California, three-quarters of Nevada, and half of Arizona descended upon the San Diego Zoo earlier this month, with everyone on the same mission: to say goodbye to Bai Yun and Xiao Liwu.

Bai Yun and Xiao Liwu are the stars of the San Diego Zoo, a mother-son duo who spend their days the way I wish I could: eating, climbing things, and taking naps, all in front of their adoring fans. Giant pandas have been a staple at the zoo since 1996, and Xiao Liwu — also known as Mr. Wu — is the sixth cub to be born and raised in San Diego.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.