Copenhagen Zoo breaks ground for Panda House
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| Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen attends the groundbreaking ceremony for a giant panda enclosure at the Copenhagen zoo in Copenhagen Nov 16, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua] |
Plans for the 2,450 square-meter enclosure were developed by Danish architecture firm Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) in collaboration with the landscape architects Schoenherr.
Inspired by the yin-yang symbol from China's traditional philosophy, the circular shaped habitat will be split to create separate enclosures for male and female pandas and to increase the probability of mating.
China and Denmark have agreed on the giant panda rental program during Queen Margrethe II's state visit to China in 2014.
In May, the Chinese Association of Zoological Gardens and Copenhagen Zoo signed the China-Denmark Giant Panda Protection and Research Co-operation Agreement in Beijing.
According to the agreement, male panda He Xing and female panda Mao Er in Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding will be sent to Denmark and live in Copenhagen Zoo for a 15-year giant panda research cooperation.
Copenhagen Zoo briefly had a panda back in 1958 when the panda Chi Chi spent three weeks here as part of a European tour.
