New pandas make their debut at National Zoo

The National Zoo announced pandas have returned to Washington and made their public debut Friday.

“The wait is OVER: the giant pandas have officially made their public debut at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, D.C.,” the National Zoo wrote Friday on the social platform X, outlining how visitors may get free entry passes.

The two pandas, Bao Li and Qing Bao, made headlines after tumbling in the snow earlier this month following their arrival from China.

The National Zoo previously showcased three giant pandas, which left Washington upon the expiration of a previous agreement in 2023.

Patrons have been awaiting the pandas' return, which has been a core part of the zoo’s attraction for decades following an exchange agreement brokered by former President Nixon with China in 1972.

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