Long Hui

Basic Profile

Long Hui (Chinese name: 龙徽, studbook number 526) was a male giant panda born on September 26, 2000 at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda’s Hetaoping Base in Wolong, Sichuan. His father was Xin Xing (新兴, studbook 350) and his mother was Tang Tang (唐唐, studbook 371). His notable siblings include Princess (公主), Ye Ye (晔晔), Gu Gu (古古), Lin Yang (林阳), Lin Hui (林惠), and Ju Xiao (菊笑).

Life Journey

Transfer to Austria (2003)

On March 3, 2003, Long Hui and female panda Yang Yang (阳阳) departed China for the Schonbrunn Zoo in Vienna, Austria, marking the beginning of the China-Austria giant panda conservation cooperation program. They arrived at the zoo’s panda exhibit on March 14, 2003. The original loan was for 10 years, later extended to 21 years.

Long Hui and Yang Yang became the zoo’s most popular attractions and were frequently covered by local media.

Natural Breeding Achievement

Long Hui and Yang Yang achieved remarkable breeding success entirely through natural mating. On March 23, 2016, they completed a successful natural mating, becoming the first giant panda pair in Europe to do so.

Their offspring:

• Fu Long (福龙): Born August 23, 2007 (twin, one cub did not survive). Returned to China in 2009.
• Fu Hu (福虎): Born 2010. Returned to China.
• Fu Bao (福豹): Born 2013. Returned to China.
• Fu Ban (福伴) and Fu Feng (福凤): Twin cubs (male and female) born August 7, 2016. Returned to China.

This breeding record set the European record for captive giant panda natural mating and production.

Death

In November 2016, Long Hui began showing symptoms of reduced appetite, weakness, and rapid weight loss. An ultrasound on December 6 revealed a 10-centimeter tumor in his abdomen. Zoo veterinarians, consulting with Chinese experts, decided to perform a CT scan to determine if surgery was needed. During anesthesia induction on December 9, 2016, Long Hui’s heart stopped. He was 16 years old.

On February 7, 2017, his remains were taxidermied and returned to China.