The Panda Baby

The birth and survival of a panda cub signals hope for the world’s most cherished endangered animals, in NATURE’s The Panda Baby.

In late August of 1999, scientists at the San Diego Zoo marked a rare event they had struggled for years to bring about: the birth of a giant panda outside of China. It made headlines around the world. But the time for celebration was not yet at hand. Five other pandas had been born in the United States — and none had lived past the fourth day.

Against the odds, however, this tiny newcomer, Hua Mei, grew and thrived, and her survival has become a hallmark of the desperate international quest to save the giant panda, perhaps the most visible symbol of the world’s endangered animals.

The Panda Baby, with the aid of exclusive footage from the World Famous San Diego Zoo, as the institution is formally known, captures all the tense drama of Hua Mei’s birth and her survival through infancy.

Production Credits

Web Credits

Producer
RONNIE GODEANU

Art Director
SABINA DALEY

Designers
LENNY DROZNER
KAREN MATTSON
RADIK SHVARTS

Pagebuilding
BRIAN SANTALONE

Writer
DAVID MALAKOFF

Production Artist
RUIYAN XU

Technical Director
BRIAN LEE

Content Consultant
GIANNA SAVOIE

About the Writer

David Malakoff is a journalist covering research discoveries and the politics of science for SCIENCE MAGAZINE in Washington, D.C. His writing has appeared in a wide range of venues, including THE ECONOMIST, THE WASHINGTON POST, and ABCNews.com.

Thirteen Online is a production of Thirteen/WNET New York’s Kravis Multimedia Education Center in New York City. Anthony Chapman, Director of Interactive & Broadband. Bob Adleman, Business Manager. Carmen DiRienzo, Vice President and Managing Director, Corporate Affairs.

Television Credits

Narrated by
MATTHEW MODINE

Produced, Directed & Edited by
SANDY OSTERTAG

Written by
SUSANE LEE

Music Composed by
DAVID LANGLEY HAMILTON

Camera
ROEL ROBLES
ERICH ROLAND
D.J. ROLLER

Assistant Camera
SEAN KILBY

Location Audio
DANIEL MENDEZ, JR
KEN SCHMITZ

Research
DAVID POWELL

On-Line Editor
BARRY GLINER

Sound Design
BILL CAVANAUGH

Audio Mix
ED CAMPBELL

Series Editor
JANET HESS

Supervising Producer
JANICE YOUNG

Post Production Producers
JILL CLARKE
PATTY JACOBSON

Production Manager
JULIE SCHAPIRO THORMAN

Associate Producer
GIANNA SAVOIE

Production Assistant
IRENE TEJARATCHI

Production Secretary
SARAH CHRISTMAN

Manager
EILEEN FRAHER

Archival Footage Courtesy of
THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO
NBC NEWS ARCHIVES
ABC NEWS
KGTV CHANNEL 10, SAN DIEGO

Special Thanks to
DEPARTMENT OF WILDLIFE FLORA AND FAUNA CONSERVATION
STATE FORESTRY ADMINISTRATION
BEIJING, CHINA
THE GIANT PANDA TEAM AT THE SAN DIEGO ZOO
SMITHSONIAN NATIONAL ZOO
ZOO ATLANTA

Production Executive
Zoological Society of San Diego
BARBARA AYERS

Coordinating Producer
Zoological Society of San Diego
JEANNE PHILLIPS

Videographer
Zoological Society of San Diego
SHAWN DENNISON

Director of Marketing
Zoological Society of San Diego
AMELIA BRAZELL

Filmed on location in cooperation with
RESEARCH AND CONSERVATION CENTER FOR THE GIANT PANDA
WOLONG, CHINA

Series Producer
BILL MURPHY

Executive In Charge
WILLIAM GRANT

Executive Producer
FRED KAUFMAN

This program was produced by Thirteen/WNET New York, which is solely responsible for its content.