'Dream come true': Brigitte Macron names French baby Panda
A four-month-old cub called Yuan Meng, which means “the realization of a wish” or “accomplishment of a dream”, is pictured during it naming ceremony at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Thibault Camus/Pool
BEAUVAL, France (Reuters) - French First Lady Brigitte Macron revealed on Monday that the first panda born in France, to whom she is "Godmother", will go by the name of Yuan Meng.
The names means "Dream come true" and was chosen by China, the country of origin of the cub's parents.
Brigitte Macron, the wife of the French president, shares a laugh with Chinese vice-foreign minister Zhang Yesui (R) and Beauval Zoo director Rodolphe Delord during a naming ceremony of the panda born at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Thibault Camus/Pool
The small male cub, survivor of two babies born on Aug. 4 at Beauval zoo about 250 km south of Paris, until now went by the name of Mini Yuan Zi after his father Yuan Zi, whose names translates as Podgy.
Brigitte Macron, wife of President Emmanuel Macron, announced the creature's official name at an event attended by China's vice foreign minister, Zhang Yesui.
The cub lost his twin sibling barely two hours after their August births, which were firsts in France.
Brigitte Macron, wife of the French president, listens to Rodolphe Delord, director of the Beauval Zoo, as she attends a naming ceremony of the panda born at the zoo, while French Junior Minister for Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne (R) looks on, in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Thibault Camus/Pool
The arrival of the panda parents in France back in 2012 was billed in official circles as a sign of warming bilateral ties.
Mother Huan Huan and her partner Yuan Zi are due to return to China in 2022 while the young panda is expected to stay in France until the age of two or three.
The cub, weighing in at 142.4 grams at birth, opened his eyes for the first time in mid-September and weighed 7.903 kilos as of Dec. 4, the Beauval zoo said on its website.
Brigitte Macron, wife of the French president, attends a naming ceremony of the panda born at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Thibault Camus/Pool
While an adult female panda can weigh up to 125 kilograms (275 pounds), a baby panda often weighs was little as 120 grams (4 ounces) at birth - or 143 grams in this case. In the wild, pandas typically give birth to a single infant, born tiny, blind, pink and almost hairless.
France's dealings with pandas - vegetarians but nonetheless burly bears with big claws - have not always been easy.
Former leader Valery Gisgard d'Estaing admitted decades after his 1970s presidency that a panda jumped on him when he entered its pen against zookeeper advice during a presidential visit to Vincennes zoo, on the eastern edge of Paris.
Brigitte Macron, wife of the French president, China's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Zhang Yesui and Rodolphe Delord, director of the zoo, attend a naming ceremony of the panda born at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
(Writing by Brian Love; editing by Richard Lough)
A four-month-old cub named Yuan Meng, which means “the realization of a wish” or “accomplishment of a dream”, is pictured during it naming ceremony at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Thibault Camus/PoolA four-month-old cub named Yuan Meng, which means “the realization of a wish” or “accomplishment of a dream”, is pictured during it naming ceremony at the Beauval Zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Thibault Camus/PoolChildren attend a naming ceremony of a panda born at the Beauval zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, central France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit TessierBrigitte Macron, wife of the French president, attends a naming ceremony of the panda born at the Beauval Zoo, with China's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Zhang Yesui and Rodolphe Delord, director of the zoo, in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit TessierYuan Meng, a four-month-old baby panda, is seen inside his enclosure during a ceremony attended by his godmother, Brigitte Macron (not in the picture), French President's wife and China's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Zhang Yesui (not in the picture) at the Beauval zoo in Saint-Aignan-sur-Cher, central France, December 4, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
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