Le Sheng

Basic Profile

Le Sheng (Chinese: 乐生, studbook number 512) is a female giant panda born on August 3, 2000 at the CCRCGP Hetaoping Base in Wolong, Sichuan.

Her mother is Fei Fei (妃妃) and her father is Le Le (乐乐) — a wild male panda who had already died of skin cancer before Le Sheng’s birth. Researchers used his frozen semen for artificial insemination, making Le Sheng a successful example of posthumous reproduction using preserved genetic material.

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Personality

Le Sheng is best known for her solitary and independent personality — she prefers to be alone, earning her the nickname “Lone Ranger” (独行侠). She is also famously gluttonous and dislikes exercise, at one point reaching a weight of 153 kg. Despite this, she has been a healthy and successful breeding female.

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Life Journey

Early Years (2000–2003)

Le Sheng spent her first three years at the Wolong Hetaoping Base. She was part of a large cohort of 2000-born cubs that included Jing Jing, Ao Yun, Fei Yun, and others.

On December 22, 2003, she was moved to the Ya’an Bifengxia Base.

Motherhood (2009)

Le Sheng began showing estrus in 2007, but the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake disrupted her cycle — she did not come into heat that year. In April 2009, she successfully mated with Lu Lu (芦芦) through natural mating.

On August 20, 2009, after a labor lasting over seven hours, she gave birth to a daughter weighing 213.8 grams — the heaviest panda cub born worldwide that year. The cub was named Shen Bin (绅宾, studbook 755) and went on to become a mother of five daughters herself.

Fuyang Ecological Park (2011–2013)

On January 10, 2011, Le Sheng was loaned to Fuyang Ecological Park in Anhui Province. She became the park’s star attraction. Her keeper noted she would appear to be sleeping, but instantly perk up when apples were offered — waddling over, grabbing the apple, and plopping down to munch it noisily.

During her stay, she weighed about 110 kg (up 5 kg from arrival). The zoo sourced fresh arrow bamboo from the Three Gorges region and provided a diet of steamed bread, vegetable balls, and apples.

On January 22, 2013, she returned to the Ya’an Bifengxia Base.

Later Years

In 2018, Le Sheng moved to the Wolong Shenshuping Base (中华大熊猫苑). In April 2023, she was briefly loaned to the Baoxing Fengtongzhai Dengchigou Panda Garden in Fengtongzhai, her home county.

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Legacy

Le Sheng’s daughter Shen Bin (绅宾, #755) has given birth to five daughters: Bing Jing (冰晶), Chen Xi (辰汐), Shen Shen (深深), Man Man (漫漫), and Fei Hong (飞虹) — carrying Le Sheng’s lineage forward.