March 11, 2022, 05:21 PM
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Le Le, the panda cub who has taken Singapore by storm, has grown up quickly and outgrown his nursery. On Thursday (Mar. 10), he officially joined his mother Jia Jia in the main Giant Panda Forest exhibit at River Wonders.
However, the mother-son duo's first day together in the main exhibit didn't come without some bumps; Le Le had a small tumble down a slope after losing his footing and had to be rescued by Jia Jia.
A new environment
On Thursday, Mandai Wildlife Reserve shared a video on Facebook documenting some of Jia Jia and Le Le's moments together.
Le Le started off a bit apprehensively, journeying cautiously into the new exhibit before turning back around and retreating.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Jia Jia then led her son into the "child proof" exhibit and showed him around.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Le Le goes tumbling down
However, while enjoying time in the enclosure with his mother, Le Le suddenly lost his balance and tumbled downhill into the shrubbery.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
With incredible speed and agility, Jia Jia bounded down the hill after her baby boy, grabbing him and dragging the almost 16kg boy back up to safety.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Cute moments
Le Le seemed to soon get the hang of living in the big boy enclosure, enjoying his time playing around and cuddling with his mother.
Here are some cute moments of Le Le and Jia Jia:
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Gif via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
Photo by Lauren Choo.
Photo by Lauren Choo.
Where's Kai Kai?
Le Le's father, Kai Kai, was not shown in the video clips of Le Le's main exhibit debut. Kai Kai lives in his own separate enclosure within the Giant Panda Forest exhibit, as pandas are territorial creatures.
In the wild, panda cubs are solely cared for by their mothers.
Previously, the panda care team shared that Kai Kai appeared to be mostly oblivious to the fact that he is now a father.
Weeks after the birth of Le Le, lead panda caregiver Trisha Tay shared with media that Kai Kai was "pretty much unaware" of the newborn despite the panda care team's reminders.
Kai Kai was more interested in his food, "as usual in his usual self”.
Mothership understands that Kai Kai is still pretty engrossed in his food.
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Top photos via Facebook/Mandai Wildlife Reserve.
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