Just in time for the Chinese New Year, Lincoln Park Zoo has a new red panda resident. Qi (pronounced “chee”), an adult male red panda, is currently adjusting to his new home at Pepper Family Wildlife Center and can be seen intermittently while he gets to know his habitat mate Nisha. Qi is 7 years old and comes to Lincoln Park Zoo from New York’s Prospect Park Zoo. He has a breeding recommendation with Nisha through the Red Panda Species Survival Plan®. This is a collaborative population management effort among institutions within the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The hope is that the two will have cubs in the future. Red pandas have a native range spanning East Asia and the Himalayas. They live in bamboo forests throughout the mountainous regions that are common within this range. Deforestation in the Himalayas is a huge thread to red pandas, leading to them being designated an endangered species with only an estimated 2,500 adults remaining in the wild. For more information about Lincoln Park Zoo, visit lpzoo.org.

Photo Credit: Lincoln Park Zoo