View source for Er Shun

{{infobox animal
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|2007|8|10}}
|birth_place = Chongqing Zoo
|species = Giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)
|gender = Female
|residence = Chongqing Zoo
}}
'''Er Shun'''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.ipanda.com/2015/10/14/ARTI1444786921906684.shtml|title=大熊猫"二顺"多伦多生崽"好事多磨"|access-date=2015-10-15}}</ref> is a female [[giant panda]], born at the Chongqing Zoo.
On Monday, March 25, 2013, two giant pandas Er Shun (female) and [[Da Mao]] (male) arrived at [[Toronto Zoo]], with their exhibit (the refurbished Amur tiger exhibit) opening to the public on May 18.  The bears are on a 10-year Canada tour from the Chengdu Panda Base and Chongqing Zoo, residing in Toronto from 2013 to 2017 and at the [[Calgary Zoo]] from 2018 to 2022. When plans were first made to bring giant pandas to Canada, Er Shun was believed to be male, and had been paired with a female from the [[Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding]] for the journey.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2012/12/06/toronto_zoos_mystery_of_the_mistaken_male_panda.html|title=Toronto Zoo's mystery of the mistaken male panda|website=[[Toronto Star]] |date=6 December 2012}}</ref> Months before her departure her true sex was determined and the known female switched out for male [[Da Mao]]. Without blood testing, identifying panda sex is next to impossible until the animals reach full sexual maturity.
With the pandas' arrival, the Toronto Zoo has refurbished its seasonal attraction area into an extensive educational centre - the Giant Panda Interpretive Centre. In 2014, after her first estrus, Er Shun was artificially inseminated - the first such procedure performed on a panda in Canada.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.torontozoo.com/press/releases.asp?pg=20140612|title = Toronto Zoo &#124; Press Releases}}</ref>  No baby was born in 2014 and it was believed that Er Shun experienced a [[pseudopregnancy]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.torontozoo.com/press/releases.asp?pg=20141211|title = Toronto Zoo &#124; Press Releases}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/zoo.21655|title=Luteal phase length, endometrial edema, and behavior differentiate post-ovulatory events in a giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca)|year=2022 |doi=10.1002/zoo.21655 |last1=Magnus |first1=Gabriel |last2=Dutton |first2=Christopher |last3=Mastromonaco |first3=Gabriela |last4=Gartley |first4=Cathy |last5=MacDonald |first5=Suzanne |last6=Franke |first6=Maria |journal=Zoo Biology |volume=41 |issue=2 |pages=130–142 |pmid=34672395 |s2cid=239051542 }}</ref> a phenomenon common in giant pandas.
On October 13, 2015, Er Shun gave birth to two cubs - the first giant pandas born in Canada.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/baby-pandas-born-toronto-zoo-1.3268166| title = Toronto Zoo announces birth of twin giant pandas {{!}} CBC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal| url = https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/zoo.21655| title = Luteal phase length, endometrial edema, and behavior differentiate post-ovulatory events in a giant panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) {{!}} Zoo Biology| year = 2022| doi = 10.1002/zoo.21655| pmid = 34672395| last1 = Magnus| first1 = G.| last2 = Dutton| first2 = C.| last3 = Mastromonaco| first3 = G.| last4 = Gartley| first4 = C.| last5 = MacDonald| first5 = S.| last6 = Franke| first6 = M.| journal = Zoo Biology| volume = 41| issue = 2| pages = 130–142| s2cid = 239051542}}</ref> One was born at 3:31 AM and weighed 187.7 g and the other was born at 3:44 AM and weighed 115 g. At this very small size, the cubs' chance of survival was low. It was announced on February 5, 2016, that the panda cubs were Male (the larger panda) and Female (smaller). They were not viewed by the public until the age of 5 months. The names of the cubs are [[Jia Yueyue and Jia Panpan (pandas)|Jia Panpan (male) and Jia Yueyue (female)]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.torontozoo.com/press/releases.asp?pg=20151013|title = Toronto Zoo &#124; Press Releases}}</ref>
On March 23, 2018, Er Shun, her cubs, and Da Mao all left the Toronto Zoo to begin a five-year stay at the Calgary Zoo, by the agreement between the Canadian and Chinese governments. In May 2020, the Calgary Zoo requested that both Er Shun and Da Mao pandas be returned to China due to the difficulty of importing bamboo during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/giant-pandas-calgary-zoo-1.5566027|title=Calgary Zoo to ship giant pandas back to China early due to bamboo supply problems|newspaper=CBC|date=May 12, 2020|access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Zoo to return pandas to China because bamboo too hard to get|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/animal-news/canada-zoo-return-pandas-china-because-bamboo-too-hard-get-n1207496|access-date=2022-01-08|website=NBC News|date=15 May 2020 |language=en}}</ref>
Er Shun was born at the Chongqing Zoo on August 10, 2007 (Year of the Pig). Her mother Yalaoer (also called Ya Ya) raised her at the zoo; her father was Ling Ling. The name Er Shun means "double smoothness" because she was the second born and they hoped for smooth and healthy growth. Er Shun's grandmother Xing Xing was in Calgary, Canada in 1988 for a friendly half-year exchange.
Er Shun's character traits include being docile, lively, and affectionate towards her zoo keepers.
==See also==
* [[List of giant pandas]]
* [[List of individual bears]]
==References==
{{Reflist}}
{{Famous giant pandas}}
[[Category:Individual giant pandas]]
[[Category:2007 animal births]]
[[Category:Individual animals in Canada]]