Yong Ba

Yong Ba is a female giant panda born on 1993-08-17 at Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. Her studbook number is 516, and she was captured from the wild as a subadult before being transferred to Chengdu Base for permanent care. She is the offspring of Pan Pan (studbook 257) and Yong Yong (studbook 275). Over her breeding career, she produced multiple surviving cubs that contributed to captive giant panda population expansion. Currently living at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, she participates in the center’s long-term captive breeding and behavioral research programs. After her breeding years concluded, she resided in the center’s senior panda enclosure for geriatric care until her death in 2012. Yong Ba was known for her maternal competence, successfully raising several cubs that were later selected for reintroduction to native temperate bamboo forests in Sichuan. As a wild-born founder of the modern captive giant panda population, she holds high conservation value for the species’ genetic diversity. Her remains are preserved for research at the China Conservation and Research Center.