Bear-y special! First panda cub born in Indonesia makes public debut in West Java

Indonesia’s First Panda Cub Charms Visitors

Indonesia first giant panda cub Satrio Wiratama, nicknamed ‘Rio’ was seen playing around in his enclosure in West Java’s Cisarua on Tuesday, after his public debut.

Footage shows visitors watching the cub’s clumsy moves as it plays around with its mother to the awe of visitors. The video also features a ceremony welcoming Rio.

Conservation Milestone for Indonesia

“Having baby Rio wasn’t such an easy journey. Pandas are not easy to breed, to be honest. And having baby Rio, we had to go through a lot of research, with many countries involved, as I said before. So, in terms of conservation, it’s a milestone for us,” Aswin Sumampau, President Director at Taman Safari Indonesia, said.

Experts Explain Rio’s Unique Appearance

Visitors noticed the cub’s remarkable fur colour, which veterinarian Bongot Huaso Mulia said is natural.

“This pink colour is natural. Some studies indicate that it is the normal microflora of the mother panda’s saliva.

This demonstrates that the mother panda not only protects her cub physically, but when she licks her cub, she also protects it by maintaining the balance of microflora on its skin,” he stated.

Rio’s Historic Birth

Satrio Wiratama – Indonesian for ‘brave and noble warrior’ – was born on November 27 last year at Taman Safari, a conservation park about 70 kilometres south of Jakarta in West Java to 15-year-old pandas Hu Chun and Cai Tao.

The pair arrived in Indonesia in 2017 as part of a 10-year conservation partnership with China, residing in a specially built enclosure at the park. Rio is the first giant panda ever born in Indonesia and the only giant panda born in a zoo outside China in the past three years.