Two giant pandas at National Zoo have begun flirting. What that could mean for conservation

Love is in the air at the Smithsonian National Zoo.

Two giant pandas at the zoo, which is located in Washington D.C., appear to be catching feelings for each other and have been spotted flirting recently.

NBC’s Ryan Nobles reported for TODAY April 3 that zoo officials say Bao Li and Qing Bao, two 4-year-old giant pandas, are growing suddenly and increasingly interested in each other.

The pandas are located in separate enclosures, but they have mesh screens, or “howdy” windows, that allow them to interact with each other safely.

“There’s a lot of flirting going on right now,” Mariel Lally, one of the giant pandas’ zookeepers, said.

In recent weeks, the two pandas have started to exhibit more flirtatious behavior.

“Bao Li, he is amped up. His testosterone is very high and he is very active. He’s scent marking a lot. He’s looking for the ladies. Qing Bao has become very active. She started to look for Bao Li. She usually never wants anything to do with Bao Li, and she’s been vocalizing at him,” Lally said.

The hope is that Qing Bao and Bao Li’s budding connection might lead to the duo breeding naturally one day. Up until now, all of the zoo’s cubs have been born through artificial insemination.

“Which is great, and it works and it helps gets the panda numbers up,” Lally said. “But we would love to be able to have a natural birth from Bao Li and Qing Bao.”

The National Zoo’s new pandas made their public debut Friday. News4’s Aimee Cho spoke to some of their fans.

A December 2017 study in Biological Conservation found that for giant pandas, natural mating resulted in better reproductive rates than artificial insemination. The birth rate after natural mating was 60.7%, followed by 50.6% for combined mating and artificial insemination, then just 18.5% for artificial insemination.

Giant pandas typically start breeding between the ages of 5 and 7 years old, and there’s a small window each year where they could conceive a cub. If they do end up welcoming a cub together naturally, it would be the first time the zoo has seen this happen in decades.

The zoo’s conservation program of the vulnerable species dates back to the 1970s when China sent pandas Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing to the U.S. after President Richard Nixon visited their country.

In 2023, the zoo returned its final three pandas upon request from China. In 2024, Qing Bao and Bao Li arrived. They’re expected to live at the zoo for 10 years.

While the two pandas continue to flirt from afar, Lally said zookeepers aren’t in a rush to arrange a playdate.

“Since they’re not of breeding age, we’re not putting them together,” Lally said. “Most likely, if we open that door, it would just be a big play session.”

“We’re just kind of letting them be teenagers right now,” Lally added.

This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY: