This four-and-a-half-month old panda cub will no longer be called “Kai Kai and Jia Jia’s cub”, but instead its new name Le Le (叻叻) from now on.
The name Le Le emerged as a clear community favourite, amassing more than 31,000 votes out of the over 64,000 votes sent in by the public for the five shortlisted options. The other options were 宏宏 (Hóng Hóng), 新乐 (Xīn Lè), 新阳 (Xīn Yáng) and 新缘 (Xīn Yuán).
ICYDK, there’s a symbolic meaning behind the name Le Le.
What does “Le (叻)” mean?
The character “Le (叻)” comes from “Shi Le Po (石叻坡)”, which was the ancient Chinese name for Singapore. This was in use since the island’s beginning as a trading port. Shi Le Po is a transliteration of the Malay term “selat” which means straits, indicative of Singapore’s geographical location.
“We are overjoyed that our panda cub now has a name, and one that is proudly indicative of his birth city,” said Dr Cheng Wen-Haur, Deputy CEO, Life Sciences and Operations, and Chief Life Sciences Officer of Mandai Wildlife Group.
“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.”
You can visit Le Le now
From December 30, you can catch Le Le in his new glass-fronted nursery at the Giant Panda Forest in River Wonders, where he can be found snoozing, playing with specially created enrichment toys, learning to walk more confidently or nibbling on bamboo shoots and leaves.
Viewing times are scheduled for around 10.30am and 3.30pm daily, as these are the times when mummy Jia Jia is comfortable to leave Le Le on his own while she goes to feed and exercise. Talk about me time. Each viewing window will range from 20 to 30 minutes, and may vary depending on the comfort level of both mother and son.
“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,” said Trisha Tay Ting Ni, Animal Care Officer, Mandai Wildlife Group, who leads the panda care team.
“At four-and-a-half months, he continues to be heavily reliant on mum’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.”
Since Singapore’s giant panda couple Kai Kai and Jia Jia were blessed with their first cub on Aug 14, 2021, the nation has been eagerly waiting and watching for updates on the cub’s growth and progress. After all, the reproduction rate among giant pandas – a threatened species – is notoriously low. And Kai Kai and Jia Jia had gone through seven breeding seasons before this breakthrough pregnancy that happened through artificial insemination.
Keep scrolling to check out Le Le’s growth since day one.
How much the giant panda cub has grown
His weight was estimated to be 200g.
Within his first month, Kai Kai and Jia Jia’s cub developed prominent black markings around his ears. His eyes and body transformed from a fur-less pink newborn to a miniature version of his parents.
At this time, Jia Jia has regained some appetite, settled well into her mothering routine, and been able to rest more. She’s comfortable enough to leave him for short intervals and has started munching on bamboo leaves again.
The panda care team has been regularly carrying out conditioning sessions via positive reinforcement training to prime Jia Jia for cub retrieval, so as to conduct thorough health checks on the baby.
The black markings continue to intensify as the cub grows.
It’s a boy! On Sept 10 (Day 28), proud daddy Kai Kai revealed his cub’s gender as part of his 14th birthday celebrations (Kai Kai’s birthday falls on Sept 14), by tugging on an enrichment gift which released a shower of blue confetti, along with carrots.
On Sept 15, the cub got his first weigh-in when mummy Jia Jia was having breakfast in her maternity ward.
From an estimated 200g at birth, he grew into a healthy 1,504g cub at 33 days old — testament to Jia Jia’s superb maternal skills.
On Sept 22 (Day 40), he opened his peepers and tipped the scales at 1,870g, growing by about 370g from the week before.
At two to three months old, the giant panda cub should be taking his first steps.
Six baby teeth were seen in this photo taken on Oct 4 (Day 52). On average, teeth for baby pandas start growing in at three months old, before they attempt eating bamboo from about seven months old.
Lead panda caretaker and animal care officer, Trisha Tay Ting Ni measured the cub for the first time on Oct 6 (Day 54). The measurement: 51.5cm from the tip of his nose to the base of his tail, which is 7.5cm long. Good gains!
On Oct 7 (Day 55), the panda cub clocked another milestone by crossing the 3kg mark, weighing 3,072g. That’s about the weight of a newborn baby in Singapore.
Jia Jia and her cub enjoy a moment of tenderness.
Jia Jia takes the spotlight while the little one relaxes in the background.
Just shy of 100 days old, the panda cub started taking his first steps.
At day 95, he weighed a little over 6kg (more than 30 times his birth weight), measured 67cm long, and had a mouthful of baby teeth.
Keep growing well, Le Le!