Why do most zoos not have pandas?

An article about the economics of keeping pandas says it costs five times more to keep a panda than the next most expensive animal, an elephant. American zoos generally pay the Chinese government one-million dollars a year in fees as part of a typical ten-year contract.



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This means that currently, you can only see pandas in zoos in the US in Washington D.C. and Atlanta, Georgia. The pandas at Smithsonian's National Zoo in Washington D.C. are on loan until December 7, 2023. The pandas in Atlanta are on loan through late 2024.

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Three US zoos currently host giant pandas: the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington DC has three, the Memphis Zoo in Tennessee has one and Zoo Atlanta in Georgia has four.

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  • In Berlin Zoo, Berlin, Bao Bao (1978–2012) was one of the first two giant pandas in Germany and became—for a time—the oldest known panda in zoos. ...
  • ZooParc de Beauval, Saint-Aignan, Loir-et-Cher, France is home to Huan Huan (F) and Yuan Zi (M) since 15 January 2012.


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The potential end of the National Zoo's panda era comes amid what veteran China-watchers say is a larger trend. With diplomatic tensions running high between Beijing and a number of Western governments, China appears to be gradually pulling back its pandas from multiple Western zoos as their agreements expire.

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The zoo claims that this is because of a three-year contract it has with the China Wildlife Conservation Association.

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Twenty-eight of the 60 are in 10 European zoos. Most zoos have 2 or 3 pandas. The zoos with the most pandas are Adventure World in Japan with 6 and Pairi Daiza in Belgium with 5. Chiang Mai Zoo in Thailand is the only zoo with a single panda.

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The Chinese government, which gifted the first pair of pandas - Hsing Hsing and Ling Ling - to the U.S., now leases the pandas out for a typical 10-year renewable term. The annual fee ranges from $1 million to $2 million per pair, plus mandatory costs to build and maintain facilities to house the animals.

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The Chinese government, which gifted the first pair of pandas - Hsing Hsing and Ling Ling - to the U.S., now leases the pandas out for a typical 10-year renewable term. The annual fee ranges from $1 million to $2 million per pair, plus mandatory costs to build and maintain facilities to house the animals.

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Panda diplomacy is the practice of sending giant pandas from China to other countries as a tool of diplomacy. From 1941 to 1984, China gave a gift of pandas to other countries. After a change in policy in 1984, pandas were leased instead of given as a gift.

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The potential end of the National Zoo's panda era comes amid what veteran China-watchers say is a larger trend. With diplomatic tensions running high between Beijing and a number of Western governments, China appears to be gradually pulling back its pandas from multiple Western zoos as their agreements expire.

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We have read the enlightening NY Times article about how pandas in U.S. zoos are like money pits, though adorable ones. The reason is because China leases the each panda to zoos for $2 million (in panda cost and research).

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Visitors can observe the panda bears undisturbed through large glass windows around the enclosure. The indoor areas are also accessible to visitors through a walkway. Berlin is welcoming to the two future darlings of the public, who are the only giant pandas in Germany after the death of panda male Bao Bao in 2012.

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Pandas are a threatened species, still just one step away from the classification of endangered. But along with China's growing efforts to protect a massive area of forested land, captive breeding has, for now, managed to avert their extinction.

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Pandas are only native to China, so all pandas in American zoos are on loan from the Chinese government. Even those born on American soil are considered property of China.

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