It’s official! The first baby panda boy born in Singapore has been named and he is called “Le Le” or 叻叻.
Giant Panda Cub Born In Singapore Named Le Le
The black-and-white panda boy was formally named today, 29 December 2021. The name of the first giant panda cub born in Singapore, born to parents Kai Kai and Jia Jia, was jointly unveiled at the 17th Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation and Related Joint Steering Council Meetings by Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies Heng Swee Keat and Vice Premier of the People’s Republic of China Han Zheng.
The name Le Le was chosen after emerging as the clear community favourite with more than 31,000 votes out of 64,000 sent in by the public.
The character Le comes from ‘Shi Le Po’ (石叻坡), an ancient Chinese name for Singapore. It is a transliteration of of the Malay term “selat” which means straits.
“We are overjoyed that our panda cub now has a name, and one that is proudly indicative of his birth city. Borne out of the close cultural ties between Singapore and China, he is an emblem of great animal care and close collaboration with our Chinese conservation partners—the China Conservation and Research Center for Giant Panda. We would like to thank all those who participated and contributed in naming him,” said Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, Deputy CEO, Life Sciences and Operations, and Chief Life Sciences Officer of Mandai Wildlife Group.
Viewing Le Le at his Special Nursery
From 30 December 2021, guests to River Wonders can visit Le Le in his new glass-fronted nursery at the Giant Panda Forest. Visitors may be able to watch him going about his daily routine which includes playing with specially created enrichment toys and learning to walk more confidently.
The viewing times for those who would like to see Le Le are scheduled for around 10.30 am and 3.30 pm daily. These viewing periods coincide with Jia Jia’s feeding and exercise sessions when she is comfortable to leave Le Le on his own.
Each ‘viewing window’, which will range between 20 to 30 minutes, may vary depending on the comfort level of both mother and son, and will be reviewed and adjusted over the next few weeks.
“The nursery was constructed to provide a safe and fun space for Le Le to meet his guests for a part of his day before he returns to Jia Jia’s side for the rest of the time. At four-and-a-half months, he continues to be heavily reliant on mom’s milk and tender loving care. Both Le Le and Jia Jia are also still getting used to spending more time away from each other, so we adapt their daily routines based on close observation to ensure their wellbeing remains the top priority and that they do not display any stressful behaviours,” said Trisha Tay Ting Ni, Animal Care Officer, Mandai Wildlife Group, who leads the panda care team.
