1 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:05,640 Speaker 1: There's a great deal of excitement in Washington these days, 2 00:00:05,640 --> 00:00:08,400 Speaker 1: but perhaps the greatest excitement is the arrival of two 3 00:00:08,440 --> 00:00:11,639 Speaker 1: pandas from China. I had a chance recently to sit 4 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:15,120 Speaker 1: down with Brandy Smith, who oversees the National Zoo and 5 00:00:15,160 --> 00:00:17,880 Speaker 1: oversees the panda program as well, to talk to her 6 00:00:17,920 --> 00:00:21,480 Speaker 1: about the pandas. Now we're in the Panda house because 7 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:24,640 Speaker 1: pandas have returned to the National Zoo. Why are pandas 8 00:00:24,640 --> 00:00:27,000 Speaker 1: so popular? I think I read that about eighty percent 9 00:00:27,000 --> 00:00:28,680 Speaker 1: of the people that come to the National Zoo come 10 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:30,880 Speaker 1: because they want to see the pandas. I mean, they're 11 00:00:30,960 --> 00:00:32,720 Speaker 1: nice animals, but why are they that popular? 12 00:00:33,080 --> 00:00:34,640 Speaker 2: I think there are a lot of reasons. I think, 13 00:00:34,680 --> 00:00:37,440 Speaker 2: first of all, they're cute. They're adorable. People just want 14 00:00:37,440 --> 00:00:40,280 Speaker 2: to see them. And the thing I love about pandas 15 00:00:40,400 --> 00:00:43,559 Speaker 2: is the way that they're built. It actually, we are 16 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:47,959 Speaker 2: genetically designed to love pandas. They have these round features, 17 00:00:48,000 --> 00:00:51,520 Speaker 2: the round ears, the round eyes, these cute voices, and 18 00:00:51,800 --> 00:00:54,880 Speaker 2: what we ping when we see a baby is the 19 00:00:54,920 --> 00:00:58,120 Speaker 2: same thing that pings when we see a panda, and 20 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:02,760 Speaker 2: so we're designed to think they're adorable. But they're also 21 00:01:02,840 --> 00:01:05,600 Speaker 2: they're rare so I think it's a matter of having 22 00:01:05,640 --> 00:01:08,280 Speaker 2: the opportunity to see them. You take the opportunity when 23 00:01:08,280 --> 00:01:11,880 Speaker 2: you can. And you know, pandas are a story of joy. 24 00:01:11,959 --> 00:01:15,119 Speaker 2: They're a story of hope and of happiness and success, 25 00:01:14,680 --> 00:01:17,400 Speaker 2: a successful program that everyone is a part of. 26 00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:19,200 Speaker 1: When did you get the new pandas? 27 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:22,840 Speaker 2: So these pandas came in October of twenty four, so 28 00:01:23,000 --> 00:01:23,760 Speaker 2: just a few months ago. 29 00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:25,759 Speaker 1: And how old are they. 30 00:01:26,160 --> 00:01:28,640 Speaker 2: They're both three years old. The pandas are here not 31 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:31,600 Speaker 2: just because they're adorable, but they're actually part of a 32 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:35,960 Speaker 2: breeding program that's helping to save the species. And so 33 00:01:36,959 --> 00:01:40,560 Speaker 2: we wanted to get the most genetically valuable animals, and 34 00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:43,280 Speaker 2: we narrowed it down to a few pairs. But I 35 00:01:43,319 --> 00:01:46,200 Speaker 2: will say we sent a veterinarian to China just to 36 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:48,600 Speaker 2: check the records of the different animals, and we did 37 00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:50,040 Speaker 2: ask them to pick the cutest pair. 38 00:01:50,800 --> 00:01:53,840 Speaker 1: As I recall when Richard Nixon went to China when 39 00:01:53,840 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 1: the famous trip in the early nineteen seventies as a gift, 40 00:01:57,320 --> 00:01:59,880 Speaker 1: Malzi Tung said, here are to pandas, and they came 41 00:02:00,040 --> 00:02:01,720 Speaker 1: to the National Zoo, and at that time, I think 42 00:02:01,880 --> 00:02:04,639 Speaker 1: they were the only pandas in the United States they were. 43 00:02:04,520 --> 00:02:07,480 Speaker 2: At that time. That was really the start of the 44 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:10,400 Speaker 2: giant panda conservation program as we know it. 45 00:02:10,880 --> 00:02:14,480 Speaker 1: They were gifts to the country. And subsequent to that, China, 46 00:02:14,520 --> 00:02:17,720 Speaker 1: as I understand it, began a program of lending pandas 47 00:02:18,040 --> 00:02:20,400 Speaker 1: or renting pandas to zoos around the world. And I 48 00:02:20,440 --> 00:02:22,520 Speaker 1: thought I read that there were like twenty seven zoos 49 00:02:22,560 --> 00:02:24,680 Speaker 1: or something like that around the world that have pandas. 50 00:02:24,760 --> 00:02:25,560 Speaker 1: Is that how it works. 51 00:02:26,040 --> 00:02:28,200 Speaker 2: We received the first pandas they were a state gift, 52 00:02:28,960 --> 00:02:30,960 Speaker 2: and then there was the loan program that was to 53 00:02:31,040 --> 00:02:33,280 Speaker 2: other zoos, and as part of that program, there's a 54 00:02:33,320 --> 00:02:37,000 Speaker 2: conservation fee that zoos pay to China to the panda 55 00:02:37,040 --> 00:02:39,920 Speaker 2: breeding centers in China, and the pandas that we have 56 00:02:40,120 --> 00:02:41,720 Speaker 2: now are part of that breeding program. 57 00:02:41,919 --> 00:02:43,960 Speaker 1: Was it easy to get the pandas to come back 58 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:46,800 Speaker 1: to Washington, d C. Did the Chinese say, we have 59 00:02:46,919 --> 00:02:48,560 Speaker 1: some extra pandas, we don't know what to do with them, 60 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:49,480 Speaker 1: we're going to give them to you. 61 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:52,560 Speaker 2: Well, it was a little more difficult than that. It 62 00:02:52,600 --> 00:02:54,480 Speaker 2: probably took us. It was about over the course of 63 00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:57,760 Speaker 2: a year where we had conversations with our colleagues in 64 00:02:57,880 --> 00:03:01,400 Speaker 2: China and we were able to get pandas here very quickly. 65 00:03:01,440 --> 00:03:03,760 Speaker 2: I think it's a testament to the relationship we've built 66 00:03:03,800 --> 00:03:09,160 Speaker 2: over decades, to the conservation success that we've had here 67 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:13,000 Speaker 2: with our pandas and our panda program. And so it 68 00:03:13,040 --> 00:03:14,919 Speaker 2: was a lot of conversations, but I think we always 69 00:03:15,000 --> 00:03:18,840 Speaker 2: knew in the end that we did want pandas at 70 00:03:18,840 --> 00:03:19,640 Speaker 2: the National Zoo. 71 00:03:20,120 --> 00:03:21,920 Speaker 1: How big is the National Zoo? How many acres do 72 00:03:21,960 --> 00:03:22,440 Speaker 1: you have here? 73 00:03:22,680 --> 00:03:24,880 Speaker 2: So we have two facilities. We have the zoo, which 74 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:27,280 Speaker 2: is in Washington, d c. It's one hundred and seventy 75 00:03:27,360 --> 00:03:30,240 Speaker 2: five acres in Rock Creek Park. And then we also 76 00:03:30,280 --> 00:03:33,679 Speaker 2: have a facility called our Conservation Biology Institute, and that's 77 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:36,440 Speaker 2: thirty two hundred acres and it's in front Royal, Virginia. 78 00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:39,160 Speaker 1: Now, when I was a little boy growing up in Baltimore, 79 00:03:39,320 --> 00:03:41,560 Speaker 1: we had a zoo there and that still exists. But 80 00:03:41,800 --> 00:03:43,960 Speaker 1: the animals always seem to be in big cages. They 81 00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 1: didn't seem to be able to roam around that much. Now, 82 00:03:46,120 --> 00:03:48,800 Speaker 1: my understanding is that people that are in charge of 83 00:03:48,880 --> 00:03:51,960 Speaker 1: zoos let animals have more freedom and more space than 84 00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:54,400 Speaker 1: they used to. But what about the argument that some 85 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:56,640 Speaker 1: people say it's not nice to have zoos at all, 86 00:03:57,040 --> 00:03:59,160 Speaker 1: because let the animals stay in the wild. Wat should 87 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:01,320 Speaker 1: we have people like me gawking at them all the time. 88 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:02,440 Speaker 1: How do you respond to that? 89 00:04:02,880 --> 00:04:05,440 Speaker 2: I love that question because it's asked by people who 90 00:04:05,480 --> 00:04:09,280 Speaker 2: care deeply about animals. And so I'll answer in two parts, 91 00:04:09,280 --> 00:04:12,480 Speaker 2: And one is the emotional part about about animals and zoos. 92 00:04:13,000 --> 00:04:15,000 Speaker 2: And I always, you know, I think about people who 93 00:04:15,040 --> 00:04:18,080 Speaker 2: have pets. Right, people get pets. The most of them 94 00:04:18,120 --> 00:04:20,960 Speaker 2: aren't trained to care for them. They don't know that much. 95 00:04:21,200 --> 00:04:22,800 Speaker 2: They bring them to their house, they have them in 96 00:04:22,839 --> 00:04:25,400 Speaker 2: their apartment, you know, go for walks every so often. 97 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:29,160 Speaker 2: But they know those animals are cared for. They know 98 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:32,080 Speaker 2: that those animals are happy. They know that they love them, 99 00:04:32,240 --> 00:04:36,920 Speaker 2: and they're loved back. Now imagine that, except imagine that 100 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:41,480 Speaker 2: you have experts, hundreds of experts who are trained in 101 00:04:41,520 --> 00:04:44,240 Speaker 2: the care of animals. Right, people spend their entire lives 102 00:04:44,279 --> 00:04:47,440 Speaker 2: caring for these animals with the best nutrition, the best 103 00:04:47,560 --> 00:04:53,440 Speaker 2: veterinary medicine, you know, habitats, they're scientifically designed to meet 104 00:04:53,480 --> 00:04:58,000 Speaker 2: their behavioral biological needs. And that's animals and zoos. We 105 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:00,839 Speaker 2: know they're happy, We love them. And we know their 106 00:05:00,880 --> 00:05:01,479 Speaker 2: loved pack. 107 00:05:01,839 --> 00:05:04,280 Speaker 1: So what is other than pandas. Who are the biggest 108 00:05:04,320 --> 00:05:07,880 Speaker 1: attraction or what are the biggest attraction at the National Zoo? 109 00:05:07,960 --> 00:05:11,159 Speaker 2: You know people, we call them the charismatic megafauna. People 110 00:05:11,240 --> 00:05:15,440 Speaker 2: love the big animals, the pandas, elephants, lions, tigers, cheetahs. 111 00:05:16,279 --> 00:05:18,720 Speaker 2: But one fact that I think is really funny, the 112 00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:23,240 Speaker 2: most searched animal on our website are snakes, and so 113 00:05:23,520 --> 00:05:25,560 Speaker 2: I don't know if people are searching them because they 114 00:05:25,560 --> 00:05:27,680 Speaker 2: want to see them or if they're searching them because 115 00:05:27,720 --> 00:05:28,760 Speaker 2: they're afraid to see them. 116 00:05:29,240 --> 00:05:31,920 Speaker 1: Let's go back and talk about the pandas because they're 117 00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:34,279 Speaker 1: so popular and obviously you get a lot of visitors 118 00:05:34,279 --> 00:05:38,159 Speaker 1: because of that. So where do pandas come from? Why 119 00:05:38,279 --> 00:05:40,200 Speaker 1: is it only in one place, as I understand it, 120 00:05:40,200 --> 00:05:42,880 Speaker 1: where pandas are. You've got two hundred countries in the world, 121 00:05:42,960 --> 00:05:44,600 Speaker 1: Why only one country has pandas. 122 00:05:45,200 --> 00:05:48,240 Speaker 2: So that's just the area they are indigenous to, kind 123 00:05:48,279 --> 00:05:51,440 Speaker 2: of the cool mountain forests in China, So that's the 124 00:05:51,520 --> 00:05:55,720 Speaker 2: habitat that sustains them the best. And pandas Actually they're 125 00:05:55,800 --> 00:05:59,200 Speaker 2: obligate bamboo eaters. If they don't eat bamboo they'll get sick. 126 00:05:59,279 --> 00:06:02,760 Speaker 2: So they're very heavily dependent upon having the appropriate habitat. 127 00:06:03,000 --> 00:06:06,600 Speaker 1: Now, originally pandas, which were maybe a couple million years old, 128 00:06:06,720 --> 00:06:10,080 Speaker 1: we think they used to have a meat diet, as 129 00:06:10,080 --> 00:06:13,159 Speaker 1: I understand they were carnivores, but then maybe five hundred 130 00:06:13,200 --> 00:06:16,360 Speaker 1: thousand years ago they became herbivores. So I don't know 131 00:06:16,400 --> 00:06:18,720 Speaker 1: if that's easy to deal with your stomach. But because 132 00:06:18,760 --> 00:06:22,760 Speaker 1: they only eat vegetables or non meat, do they have 133 00:06:22,920 --> 00:06:24,640 Speaker 1: enough nutrition to get through the day. 134 00:06:24,839 --> 00:06:27,599 Speaker 2: A lot of people don't realize this pandas are. They're 135 00:06:27,600 --> 00:06:31,200 Speaker 2: taxonomically their carnivores, and they are bears. They are true bears, 136 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:34,400 Speaker 2: and they have evolved to take advantage of a more 137 00:06:34,400 --> 00:06:37,279 Speaker 2: plentiful resource. They don't have to chase down their food. 138 00:06:37,279 --> 00:06:39,760 Speaker 2: It pretty much just grows up around them as they 139 00:06:39,800 --> 00:06:43,520 Speaker 2: fit there. So they've evolved special adaptations to be able 140 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:47,120 Speaker 2: to consume bamboo as quickly as possible. But what it 141 00:06:47,240 --> 00:06:51,120 Speaker 2: lacks in quality, they make up for in quantity. So 142 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:54,080 Speaker 2: the pandas here at the National Zoo, we feed each 143 00:06:54,240 --> 00:06:57,960 Speaker 2: panda one hundred pounds of freshly cut bamboo every single day. 144 00:06:58,520 --> 00:07:01,000 Speaker 1: And if you eat one hundred pounds of food, which 145 00:07:01,040 --> 00:07:04,640 Speaker 1: is bamboo every day, one hundred pounds a day. Doesn't 146 00:07:04,640 --> 00:07:06,400 Speaker 1: that take a lot of energy? And does that mean 147 00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:08,600 Speaker 1: that they sleep a lot? Because they use up a 148 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:09,400 Speaker 1: lot of energy. 149 00:07:09,200 --> 00:07:12,600 Speaker 2: Eating they do, they're digesting, so they spend their times. 150 00:07:12,880 --> 00:07:15,640 Speaker 2: I feel like a panda's life is eating, sleeping, and playing. 151 00:07:15,920 --> 00:07:18,400 Speaker 2: So I also think we love pandas because they're living 152 00:07:18,600 --> 00:07:21,960 Speaker 2: like our best lives. And so it's so fun to 153 00:07:22,000 --> 00:07:24,320 Speaker 2: watch them because sometimes you'll see a panda just, you know, 154 00:07:24,360 --> 00:07:27,400 Speaker 2: bowing through bamboo leaves and they'll actually stop for a second, 155 00:07:27,520 --> 00:07:29,520 Speaker 2: and you think it almost looks like they're taking a 156 00:07:29,520 --> 00:07:32,400 Speaker 2: little mini naps. They digest their bamboo before they just 157 00:07:32,480 --> 00:07:33,160 Speaker 2: keep eating more. 158 00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:35,840 Speaker 1: Now when they pick up the bamboo, and you grow 159 00:07:35,880 --> 00:07:37,960 Speaker 1: your own bamboo, right, you don't bring it in from China. 160 00:07:38,000 --> 00:07:40,360 Speaker 1: You grow it somewhere in the National Zoo Area. 161 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:43,600 Speaker 2: We actually grow. So we have the facility in Virginia 162 00:07:43,680 --> 00:07:46,560 Speaker 2: thirty two hundred acres. We do a lot of our 163 00:07:46,560 --> 00:07:48,720 Speaker 2: research there. All of our labs are there for all 164 00:07:48,760 --> 00:07:51,160 Speaker 2: of the conservation and science work that we do, but 165 00:07:51,280 --> 00:07:53,440 Speaker 2: we also grow. We grow all of our own hey, 166 00:07:53,520 --> 00:07:56,000 Speaker 2: our own alfalfa, and our bamboo as well. 167 00:07:56,400 --> 00:08:01,600 Speaker 1: Now panda bear has like we have fingers, Panda bear 168 00:08:01,680 --> 00:08:03,840 Speaker 1: seems to have like a six finger help them pick 169 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:06,760 Speaker 1: up the bamboo. Is that an evolutionary trick or something 170 00:08:06,760 --> 00:08:07,960 Speaker 1: to help them pick up bamboo. 171 00:08:08,080 --> 00:08:11,440 Speaker 2: It's not really a thumb. It's a modified wristbone that 172 00:08:11,560 --> 00:08:15,280 Speaker 2: actually almost it's a flexible wristbone that functions almost like 173 00:08:15,320 --> 00:08:17,240 Speaker 2: a thumb as they hold Think about as they hold 174 00:08:17,240 --> 00:08:20,120 Speaker 2: on to bamboo, because bamboo's circular, so if you watch them, 175 00:08:20,120 --> 00:08:22,440 Speaker 2: it looks like they're holding on and it's part of 176 00:08:22,440 --> 00:08:25,360 Speaker 2: that evolution from being instead of investing in being a 177 00:08:25,360 --> 00:08:28,200 Speaker 2: better predator right and being able to chase down their meat, 178 00:08:28,600 --> 00:08:32,800 Speaker 2: they invested evolutionarily and being the best bamboo eater you 179 00:08:32,800 --> 00:08:33,640 Speaker 2: can imagine. 180 00:08:33,800 --> 00:08:36,800 Speaker 1: Now, there's a problem that pandas have in that there's 181 00:08:36,800 --> 00:08:39,400 Speaker 1: so few of them. It was for a long time 182 00:08:39,480 --> 00:08:41,880 Speaker 1: that panders were thought to be an endangered species. Now 183 00:08:41,880 --> 00:08:44,760 Speaker 1: they're called vulnerable. But how many pandas are there in 184 00:08:44,760 --> 00:08:45,520 Speaker 1: the entire world. 185 00:08:45,960 --> 00:08:49,280 Speaker 2: So this is incredible because this is all due to 186 00:08:49,360 --> 00:08:52,520 Speaker 2: this panda program, and this is so important. So when 187 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:55,920 Speaker 2: we started with giant pandas fifty years ago, there were 188 00:08:56,000 --> 00:08:58,880 Speaker 2: fewer than a thousand pandas in the world. Right, we're 189 00:08:58,880 --> 00:09:01,240 Speaker 2: talking in the wild and ze fewer than a thousand 190 00:09:02,000 --> 00:09:06,319 Speaker 2: and decades later, there are close to two thousand pandas 191 00:09:06,400 --> 00:09:08,160 Speaker 2: in the wild. Now, actually you think a little over 192 00:09:08,200 --> 00:09:12,079 Speaker 2: eighteen hundred. There are over seven hundred pandas in breeding centers. 193 00:09:12,760 --> 00:09:16,559 Speaker 2: So as part of this program, we have tripled the 194 00:09:16,640 --> 00:09:17,760 Speaker 2: number of pandas on the planet. 195 00:09:17,760 --> 00:09:19,840 Speaker 1: It's still a small number of pandas, it's. 196 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:22,679 Speaker 2: A small number. But what we're also doing, and this 197 00:09:22,760 --> 00:09:25,000 Speaker 2: is what I love about the Panda program. People come here, 198 00:09:25,080 --> 00:09:27,600 Speaker 2: they see the pandas, they're cute, it's great. But when 199 00:09:27,600 --> 00:09:30,360 Speaker 2: they contribute, when they buy a stuffed panda or a 200 00:09:30,360 --> 00:09:34,160 Speaker 2: T shirt or something, they are actually funding our conservation efforts. 201 00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:36,920 Speaker 2: So not only are we breeding pandas, not only are 202 00:09:36,920 --> 00:09:40,240 Speaker 2: we learning more about giant pandas, but we're saving their 203 00:09:40,280 --> 00:09:43,600 Speaker 2: habitat in the wild. So when this started, there were 204 00:09:43,679 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 2: probably just ten about ten small little reserves where pandas 205 00:09:49,520 --> 00:09:54,120 Speaker 2: could live. There are panda reserves in China three times 206 00:09:54,160 --> 00:09:58,280 Speaker 2: the size of Yellowstone. So because of this program, there 207 00:09:58,280 --> 00:10:02,000 Speaker 2: are more pandas on the planet, more quality panda habitat 208 00:10:02,000 --> 00:10:04,520 Speaker 2: in the wild, and pandas have gone from being endangered 209 00:10:04,559 --> 00:10:05,400 Speaker 2: to being vulnerable. 210 00:10:05,880 --> 00:10:07,800 Speaker 1: Now. One of the problems that pandas have and the 211 00:10:07,840 --> 00:10:10,880 Speaker 1: reason they're so few, is that their ability to reproduce 212 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:13,520 Speaker 1: is the most limited, it seems, are the most challenging 213 00:10:13,800 --> 00:10:16,680 Speaker 1: in the entire animal world. So I think the female 214 00:10:16,760 --> 00:10:19,320 Speaker 1: panda can reproduce only a short period of time, maybe 215 00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:21,679 Speaker 1: one day a year or something like that. So the 216 00:10:21,679 --> 00:10:23,440 Speaker 1: male has to show up at the right time, right, 217 00:10:24,040 --> 00:10:25,360 Speaker 1: and how does that work? 218 00:10:25,440 --> 00:10:29,240 Speaker 2: Well, it's actually really interesting. So the males. The female 219 00:10:29,280 --> 00:10:33,000 Speaker 2: has a very narrow window where she's reproductively viable, but 220 00:10:33,040 --> 00:10:36,240 Speaker 2: the males go through something called rut, so it's much longer. 221 00:10:36,600 --> 00:10:41,520 Speaker 2: So basically for months that could overlap multiple females estrus. 222 00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:45,720 Speaker 2: The males are basically they're looking for a mate, so 223 00:10:46,040 --> 00:10:49,960 Speaker 2: they are they're scent marking, they're patrolling, they're covering a 224 00:10:50,040 --> 00:10:53,560 Speaker 2: large territory. And what they're really doing is they're both 225 00:10:53,640 --> 00:10:56,400 Speaker 2: looking for a mate and they're advertising to females that 226 00:10:56,440 --> 00:10:59,160 Speaker 2: they would be a great father to their cubs. 227 00:11:00,080 --> 00:11:02,640 Speaker 1: So many VIPs I soon call you up and say 228 00:11:02,679 --> 00:11:05,040 Speaker 1: I'd like to come bring my grandchildren, my children. I 229 00:11:05,040 --> 00:11:07,200 Speaker 1: want to come myself to see pantas. You get a 230 00:11:07,200 --> 00:11:07,560 Speaker 1: lot of that. 231 00:11:07,960 --> 00:11:09,839 Speaker 2: So there are a lot of people who want to 232 00:11:09,840 --> 00:11:12,360 Speaker 2: see giant pandas. And the thing I love the most 233 00:11:12,440 --> 00:11:15,240 Speaker 2: is we are part of the Smithsonian and so everyone, 234 00:11:15,480 --> 00:11:18,040 Speaker 2: no matter how VIP you are, you can come here. 235 00:11:18,120 --> 00:11:19,480 Speaker 2: You can see giant pandas for free. 236 00:11:19,640 --> 00:11:21,440 Speaker 1: Let me ask you how one becomes the head of 237 00:11:21,440 --> 00:11:23,840 Speaker 1: the National Zoo. Let's talk about your background. 238 00:11:24,440 --> 00:11:28,800 Speaker 2: So where did you grow up in Indiana, Pennsylvania. It's 239 00:11:28,840 --> 00:11:32,840 Speaker 2: in western Pennsylvania, small town we had. I had a 240 00:11:32,920 --> 00:11:36,640 Speaker 2: rural delivery address and most of my relatives are coal miners. 241 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:38,640 Speaker 1: So when you were growing up and you're a little girl, 242 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:41,320 Speaker 1: did you play with dolls or do you play with pandas? 243 00:11:41,480 --> 00:11:45,439 Speaker 2: I didn't have pandas, so stuffed animals, and you know, 244 00:11:45,480 --> 00:11:48,200 Speaker 2: our neighbors had cows, so I'd always go over and 245 00:11:48,240 --> 00:11:50,920 Speaker 2: you know, you know, feed the cows, and you know, 246 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:53,280 Speaker 2: see my friends who worked at who lived on farms. 247 00:11:53,559 --> 00:11:55,959 Speaker 1: So you told your parents you want to be a 248 00:11:56,480 --> 00:11:58,640 Speaker 1: National Zoo director? How did you let your parents know 249 00:11:58,679 --> 00:12:00,640 Speaker 1: that you wanted to be are you? Are you trained 250 00:12:00,640 --> 00:12:01,559 Speaker 1: as a zoologist? 251 00:12:01,760 --> 00:12:06,720 Speaker 2: So I actually I was a young girl interested in science, 252 00:12:06,840 --> 00:12:09,920 Speaker 2: you know, in the middle of nowhere in Pennsylvania, and 253 00:12:10,240 --> 00:12:12,480 Speaker 2: I thought that if you wanted to be a scientist, 254 00:12:12,559 --> 00:12:14,440 Speaker 2: that meant you were a doctor. And I thought that 255 00:12:14,559 --> 00:12:17,640 Speaker 2: was my only career path. And I actually got it. 256 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:21,880 Speaker 2: My undergraduate degree is in biology, and you know, I 257 00:12:22,200 --> 00:12:23,800 Speaker 2: thought about it and I thought, this isn't what I 258 00:12:23,840 --> 00:12:26,719 Speaker 2: want to do. I want to work with animals. So 259 00:12:26,920 --> 00:12:29,800 Speaker 2: I was about to start an internship with an ophthalmologist 260 00:12:30,400 --> 00:12:34,000 Speaker 2: and I called the Pittsburgh Zoo and I just said, 261 00:12:34,080 --> 00:12:36,439 Speaker 2: I want to do what you do. Tell me, how 262 00:12:36,440 --> 00:12:39,000 Speaker 2: did you get this job? And because this was, you know, 263 00:12:39,080 --> 00:12:41,560 Speaker 2: back in the day, the guy said, he said, actually, 264 00:12:41,679 --> 00:12:44,800 Speaker 2: I'm on my way to interview for a summer intern 265 00:12:45,240 --> 00:12:47,600 Speaker 2: and I'll interview you right now, and if you do well, 266 00:12:47,640 --> 00:12:51,960 Speaker 2: I'll hire you. And so I got the job and 267 00:12:52,000 --> 00:12:54,880 Speaker 2: I went home and I told my mother that instead 268 00:12:54,880 --> 00:12:57,360 Speaker 2: of doing an internship with a doctor, I was going 269 00:12:57,440 --> 00:13:01,960 Speaker 2: to intern as a zoo keeper. And well, we were 270 00:13:02,040 --> 00:13:05,240 Speaker 2: driving at the time, so one is, she almost drove 271 00:13:05,280 --> 00:13:07,480 Speaker 2: the car off the road, but the other it was 272 00:13:07,520 --> 00:13:10,040 Speaker 2: the first time I ever heard my mother swear, and 273 00:13:10,600 --> 00:13:13,240 Speaker 2: she said, she's like, at least do something respectable with 274 00:13:13,280 --> 00:13:14,360 Speaker 2: your life. Be a lawyer. 275 00:13:14,440 --> 00:13:17,480 Speaker 1: Okay, so you get this internship and you obviously must 276 00:13:17,520 --> 00:13:18,800 Speaker 1: have liked it. So then what happened? 277 00:13:19,240 --> 00:13:21,720 Speaker 2: I always tell people I never made a smart career 278 00:13:21,840 --> 00:13:24,000 Speaker 2: choice in my life, so I always just kind of 279 00:13:24,000 --> 00:13:28,000 Speaker 2: followed my heart, and I did the internship at the zoo. 280 00:13:28,080 --> 00:13:30,640 Speaker 2: The thing I love about zoos is not just that 281 00:13:30,720 --> 00:13:35,680 Speaker 2: they educate and inspire people, but they are unique conservation organizations. 282 00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:38,720 Speaker 2: There are species that exist on the planet today because 283 00:13:38,720 --> 00:13:41,160 Speaker 2: of zoos, because we care for animals and can breathe them. 284 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:45,959 Speaker 2: Blackfooted ferret, Panamaanian golden frog, simitar horned rigx, California conders. 285 00:13:45,960 --> 00:13:48,920 Speaker 2: The list goes on. And so I was really fascinated 286 00:13:48,960 --> 00:13:52,400 Speaker 2: with the idea of genetically managing how we manage these 287 00:13:52,400 --> 00:13:55,600 Speaker 2: species genetically so that they're saved for the wild. I 288 00:13:55,640 --> 00:13:59,960 Speaker 2: got a master's degree in zoology that focused on genetic management. 289 00:14:00,760 --> 00:14:03,000 Speaker 2: Then I got a job in another zoo, I did 290 00:14:03,000 --> 00:14:06,280 Speaker 2: more internships, I got my PhD, and eventually I ended 291 00:14:06,360 --> 00:14:06,680 Speaker 2: up here. 292 00:14:06,800 --> 00:14:09,920 Speaker 1: All right, so you've got your PhD in zoology. 293 00:14:10,040 --> 00:14:13,280 Speaker 2: It's a program at University of Maryland. It's called behavior, Ecology, 294 00:14:13,320 --> 00:14:14,520 Speaker 2: Evolution and Systematics. 295 00:14:14,559 --> 00:14:16,520 Speaker 1: So and then you get a job immediately there after 296 00:14:16,640 --> 00:14:17,520 Speaker 1: at the National Zoo. 297 00:14:17,559 --> 00:14:19,440 Speaker 2: Well, actually I had a job. I was the head 298 00:14:19,440 --> 00:14:22,560 Speaker 2: of conservation and science for an organization called the Association 299 00:14:22,640 --> 00:14:25,600 Speaker 2: of Zoos and Aquariums. So we set kind of conservation 300 00:14:25,680 --> 00:14:29,040 Speaker 2: goals for zoos, accredited zoos across the country. It's an office, 301 00:14:29,080 --> 00:14:32,720 Speaker 2: it's an association, and I just really missed. I missed 302 00:14:32,720 --> 00:14:35,760 Speaker 2: being in a zoo. I missed the animals. We create 303 00:14:35,880 --> 00:14:38,400 Speaker 2: magic for people on a daily basis, and I missed 304 00:14:38,400 --> 00:14:39,040 Speaker 2: being part of that. 305 00:14:39,160 --> 00:14:40,960 Speaker 1: So how many zoos are there in the United States? 306 00:14:41,080 --> 00:14:44,760 Speaker 2: So there are about twenty five hundred licensed animal exhibitors 307 00:14:44,760 --> 00:14:47,880 Speaker 2: in the United States, But then there's also an accrediting 308 00:14:47,920 --> 00:14:51,040 Speaker 2: program by the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and I 309 00:14:51,040 --> 00:14:54,000 Speaker 2: think under two hundred and fifty zoos are accredited, So 310 00:14:54,120 --> 00:14:56,960 Speaker 2: less than ten percent of zoos in the country are accredited, 311 00:14:57,200 --> 00:14:58,560 Speaker 2: and those are the best of the best. 312 00:14:58,720 --> 00:15:01,560 Speaker 1: So the most famous in the United States were the biggest. 313 00:15:01,560 --> 00:15:03,960 Speaker 1: I would think leaving the National Zoo a side is 314 00:15:03,960 --> 00:15:06,000 Speaker 1: the San Diego Zoo Is that the biggest? Actually? 315 00:15:06,120 --> 00:15:08,840 Speaker 2: So, I do think it's the most well known zoo. 316 00:15:08,920 --> 00:15:11,440 Speaker 2: A lot of people are very familiar with that zoo. 317 00:15:11,480 --> 00:15:14,240 Speaker 1: Over the years the National Zoo is not the only 318 00:15:14,320 --> 00:15:17,040 Speaker 1: zoo in the United States that's had pandas, right, and 319 00:15:17,080 --> 00:15:20,640 Speaker 1: so I thought there were at one point four San Diego, Memphis, Atlanta, 320 00:15:20,680 --> 00:15:22,760 Speaker 1: and Washington. They still have. 321 00:15:22,760 --> 00:15:25,200 Speaker 2: Them now as part of the loan program started at 322 00:15:25,280 --> 00:15:27,400 Speaker 2: roughly the same time, so a lot of the pandas 323 00:15:27,400 --> 00:15:29,880 Speaker 2: were kind of moving through in cohorts, and so a 324 00:15:29,880 --> 00:15:32,920 Speaker 2: lot of zoos in the past two or three years 325 00:15:33,240 --> 00:15:36,480 Speaker 2: their pandas were older and returned to China. And so 326 00:15:36,680 --> 00:15:39,160 Speaker 2: right now only the National Zoo and the San Diego 327 00:15:39,240 --> 00:15:40,120 Speaker 2: Zoo have giant pandas. 328 00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:42,320 Speaker 1: So go back and finish up on your career. So 329 00:15:42,360 --> 00:15:45,360 Speaker 1: you're working at this association and you now say, I 330 00:15:45,400 --> 00:15:47,560 Speaker 1: really want to be with animals directly. So then did 331 00:15:47,560 --> 00:15:48,920 Speaker 1: you apply to the National Zoo. 332 00:15:49,040 --> 00:15:52,560 Speaker 2: Yeah, there was an opening for a general curator. It 333 00:15:52,600 --> 00:15:55,280 Speaker 2: was more of a curator of mammals, and it was 334 00:15:55,360 --> 00:15:59,360 Speaker 2: also the curator of giant pandas. And so my story 335 00:15:59,360 --> 00:16:01,800 Speaker 2: actually came full circle because when I got the job 336 00:16:01,880 --> 00:16:04,720 Speaker 2: here and I was in charge of the giant pandas, 337 00:16:04,720 --> 00:16:05,920 Speaker 2: my mother was so proud. 338 00:16:06,720 --> 00:16:08,440 Speaker 1: Did she come to visit the pandas? Ever? 339 00:16:08,520 --> 00:16:09,160 Speaker 2: Oh right away? 340 00:16:10,320 --> 00:16:12,000 Speaker 1: So all right, So then you were the head of 341 00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:15,360 Speaker 1: the mammal program, including that the pandas. When did you 342 00:16:15,400 --> 00:16:17,960 Speaker 1: become the head of the National Zoo itself the whole head? 343 00:16:18,160 --> 00:16:20,880 Speaker 2: At first I was essentially curator of mammals and curator 344 00:16:20,880 --> 00:16:24,520 Speaker 2: of giant pandas, and then after a few years I 345 00:16:24,600 --> 00:16:27,160 Speaker 2: became the head of Animal Care, so I saw all 346 00:16:27,200 --> 00:16:32,120 Speaker 2: of the animals, the veterinarians, nutrition, wrecords, behavior, all of 347 00:16:32,160 --> 00:16:36,440 Speaker 2: the departments. And then eventually I became deputy director, and 348 00:16:36,520 --> 00:16:38,120 Speaker 2: then a few years later I became director. 349 00:16:38,400 --> 00:16:42,160 Speaker 1: So if you walk around and did she the pandas, 350 00:16:42,160 --> 00:16:43,240 Speaker 1: did they recognize you? 351 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:45,760 Speaker 2: It is one of the saddest movements of my life. 352 00:16:45,800 --> 00:16:47,920 Speaker 2: When I was curator of giant pandas and I was 353 00:16:47,960 --> 00:16:50,480 Speaker 2: here all of the time, the pandas knew who I was. 354 00:16:50,560 --> 00:16:52,840 Speaker 2: They recognized me or at least my voice, and I 355 00:16:52,840 --> 00:16:55,000 Speaker 2: could call their name and they would show an interest. 356 00:16:55,760 --> 00:16:59,120 Speaker 2: But as director, I don't. I'm not with them every day. 357 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:01,400 Speaker 2: I'm not the ringer food and love and happiness. 358 00:17:01,520 --> 00:17:04,199 Speaker 1: So today, how many different species do you have at 359 00:17:04,200 --> 00:17:05,000 Speaker 1: the National Zoo? 360 00:17:05,880 --> 00:17:11,200 Speaker 2: We have about three thousand animals from about three hundred 361 00:17:11,200 --> 00:17:12,440 Speaker 2: different species. 362 00:17:12,280 --> 00:17:15,400 Speaker 1: And how many professionals do you have working here. 363 00:17:15,280 --> 00:17:17,320 Speaker 2: At both locations. We've got about four hundred people. 364 00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:20,480 Speaker 1: And how many people come a year to the National Zoo. 365 00:17:20,480 --> 00:17:24,640 Speaker 2: So just under two million people come every year. And 366 00:17:24,720 --> 00:17:28,359 Speaker 2: we actually we only had one year without Giant Pandas, 367 00:17:28,720 --> 00:17:31,840 Speaker 2: and what we noticed was that our attendants actually dropped 368 00:17:31,960 --> 00:17:34,360 Speaker 2: twenty percent when Giant pandas weren't here. 369 00:17:34,480 --> 00:17:36,960 Speaker 1: What did you do when COVID came? Nobody showed up? 370 00:17:37,000 --> 00:17:39,920 Speaker 2: Then, right, we didn't have any visitors, but we had 371 00:17:39,920 --> 00:17:43,120 Speaker 2: to keep working. So if we're responsible for the living collection, 372 00:17:43,400 --> 00:17:46,240 Speaker 2: I'll actually never forget that moment because the world is 373 00:17:46,280 --> 00:17:49,560 Speaker 2: closing down because of COVID. And our team gathered in 374 00:17:49,600 --> 00:17:52,000 Speaker 2: our line in Tiger Building and the offices there have 375 00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:54,840 Speaker 2: this kind of bunker like feel, and we were there 376 00:17:54,960 --> 00:17:58,280 Speaker 2: and we said, okay, what do we do? And everyone's concern. 377 00:17:58,640 --> 00:18:01,240 Speaker 2: The concern wasn't I can't go home. The concern was 378 00:18:01,280 --> 00:18:03,200 Speaker 2: what happens if I get sick and I can't take 379 00:18:03,200 --> 00:18:06,400 Speaker 2: care of my animals? And so we had animal care. 380 00:18:06,480 --> 00:18:09,400 Speaker 2: We had a team and b team that didn't cross, 381 00:18:09,720 --> 00:18:12,680 Speaker 2: so we could always have someone who could be there 382 00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:13,920 Speaker 2: to take care of the animals. 383 00:18:14,160 --> 00:18:16,920 Speaker 1: Now does a China say if you have two pandas 384 00:18:16,920 --> 00:18:20,040 Speaker 1: that they've rented to you, and there's a baby panda 385 00:18:20,480 --> 00:18:22,600 Speaker 1: that they owned the baby panda, or do you own 386 00:18:22,640 --> 00:18:23,560 Speaker 1: the baby panda? 387 00:18:23,640 --> 00:18:26,120 Speaker 2: So they own all pandas. But this is a good 388 00:18:26,160 --> 00:18:30,000 Speaker 2: thing because the majority of pandas live in China. And 389 00:18:30,080 --> 00:18:34,080 Speaker 2: so again we're not producing pandas just because we went 390 00:18:34,160 --> 00:18:38,040 Speaker 2: to although it's wonderful. These pandas are all part of 391 00:18:38,080 --> 00:18:41,040 Speaker 2: a conservation program. So if a cub was here and 392 00:18:41,080 --> 00:18:43,320 Speaker 2: it grew up here, it can't breed with its parents, 393 00:18:43,720 --> 00:18:46,000 Speaker 2: and so the cub returns to China so that it 394 00:18:46,000 --> 00:18:48,080 Speaker 2: can be part of the breeding program. 395 00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:51,440 Speaker 1: When a baby is let's say, has some fur and 396 00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:55,400 Speaker 1: can see and hear, a human can pick that baby up, right, 397 00:18:55,440 --> 00:18:57,560 Speaker 1: I mean, let's say in a zoo or a control setting, 398 00:18:57,720 --> 00:19:00,840 Speaker 1: you're allowed to pick up a panda a small a size. 399 00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:02,320 Speaker 1: But is that right? 400 00:19:02,640 --> 00:19:06,119 Speaker 2: We do wellness checks on the cubs soon after they're born, 401 00:19:06,280 --> 00:19:09,240 Speaker 2: so we do actually get hands on our giant pandas 402 00:19:09,280 --> 00:19:10,960 Speaker 2: just to make sure they're doing fine and they're healthy 403 00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:12,000 Speaker 2: and everything's okay. 404 00:19:12,040 --> 00:19:15,400 Speaker 1: After a panda is what size? Is it not possible 405 00:19:15,400 --> 00:19:18,080 Speaker 1: for a zoo keeper to actually be in the cage 406 00:19:18,080 --> 00:19:20,800 Speaker 1: alone with them because they're bears and it could be dangerous. 407 00:19:20,920 --> 00:19:23,600 Speaker 2: So it's actually usually when they're about a year old, 408 00:19:24,200 --> 00:19:28,200 Speaker 2: they hit about one hundred pounds, and that's the time 409 00:19:28,240 --> 00:19:30,840 Speaker 2: when they start to get they're not predators. They're not 410 00:19:30,840 --> 00:19:33,160 Speaker 2: going to see you as food, right, they don't see 411 00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:35,800 Speaker 2: you as a threat. But even if they just do right, 412 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:38,800 Speaker 2: they've got strong jaws. They've got sharp claws, so an 413 00:19:38,840 --> 00:19:41,880 Speaker 2: animal could inadvertently hurt you even without trying. 414 00:19:41,920 --> 00:19:46,720 Speaker 1: It probably went into a panda, you know place right now, 415 00:19:46,800 --> 00:19:48,879 Speaker 1: like here where the pandas are, and there they is 416 00:19:48,920 --> 00:19:53,080 Speaker 1: now weigh three hundred pounds. Would that be dangerous And it. 417 00:19:53,040 --> 00:19:55,679 Speaker 2: Would be and not because again they're not predators, so 418 00:19:55,680 --> 00:19:57,600 Speaker 2: they wouldn't see you as food. It wouldn't look like 419 00:19:57,640 --> 00:20:01,320 Speaker 2: a tasty treat if you walked in, but they would think. 420 00:20:01,359 --> 00:20:03,360 Speaker 2: They could think that you're a toy. They could think 421 00:20:03,400 --> 00:20:05,679 Speaker 2: that we're something that we gave to them just to 422 00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:10,080 Speaker 2: play with their jaws. Their bite force actually equals that 423 00:20:10,359 --> 00:20:13,439 Speaker 2: of a lion or tiger. So if they wanted to 424 00:20:13,440 --> 00:20:15,840 Speaker 2: play with you, they've got the claws, they got the teeth, 425 00:20:15,840 --> 00:20:17,520 Speaker 2: they got the strength. They could do some damage. 426 00:20:17,600 --> 00:20:20,639 Speaker 1: So let's talk about the pandacam for a moment. You 427 00:20:20,760 --> 00:20:24,520 Speaker 1: have a camera that watches pandas twenty four hours a day. 428 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:27,680 Speaker 2: I think people really enjoy watching the pandacam because they're 429 00:20:27,720 --> 00:20:32,639 Speaker 2: seeing them how we watch them. We decided we're going 430 00:20:32,680 --> 00:20:34,720 Speaker 2: to do something a little bit different this year because 431 00:20:34,760 --> 00:20:36,960 Speaker 2: it's not just people in the United States, but people 432 00:20:37,119 --> 00:20:40,199 Speaker 2: around the world are watching the pandacam. We want to 433 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:42,760 Speaker 2: do it during the daytime, you know, during the twelve 434 00:20:42,800 --> 00:20:45,600 Speaker 2: hours during the day when people are when you know, 435 00:20:45,640 --> 00:20:48,000 Speaker 2: the pandas are awake, when keepers are interacting with them. 436 00:20:48,359 --> 00:20:49,840 Speaker 2: So what we're going to do is we'll have twelve 437 00:20:49,880 --> 00:20:52,720 Speaker 2: hours with the giant pandas and then replay at twelve 438 00:20:52,760 --> 00:20:54,359 Speaker 2: hours for the people on the other side of the 439 00:20:54,400 --> 00:20:55,800 Speaker 2: world who want to see giant pandas. 440 00:20:55,920 --> 00:20:58,400 Speaker 1: Have you thought about selling advertising on your pandacam. 441 00:20:58,600 --> 00:21:02,320 Speaker 2: We are Smithsonians Nationals Zoo, and so we receive about 442 00:21:02,640 --> 00:21:06,320 Speaker 2: sixty percent of our funding from the federal government, and 443 00:21:06,440 --> 00:21:08,600 Speaker 2: as such, we want to make sure that we are 444 00:21:08,640 --> 00:21:11,240 Speaker 2: open and available to every single person who wants to 445 00:21:11,240 --> 00:21:14,920 Speaker 2: see tiant pandas and not necessarily be assailed by by ads. 446 00:21:15,000 --> 00:21:17,879 Speaker 1: So sixty percent of your funding comes from the federal government. 447 00:21:18,000 --> 00:21:19,920 Speaker 1: The other forty percent just falls out of the sky. 448 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:20,960 Speaker 1: Where does that come from? 449 00:21:21,480 --> 00:21:23,480 Speaker 2: Well, we're really fortunate, you know, we were talking about 450 00:21:23,480 --> 00:21:28,920 Speaker 2: the pandacam and so Boeing sponsors our pandacams their corporations 451 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:33,199 Speaker 2: to help splonster us. We have some incredibly generous donors 452 00:21:33,240 --> 00:21:37,400 Speaker 2: who support us through philanthropy, and we also generate revenue. 453 00:21:37,760 --> 00:21:40,000 Speaker 2: And so when people come here, they come to the zoo, 454 00:21:40,040 --> 00:21:42,600 Speaker 2: and they come here for free because we're Smithsonian. But 455 00:21:42,680 --> 00:21:45,240 Speaker 2: when they buy a stuffed panda or a T shirt, 456 00:21:45,359 --> 00:21:47,560 Speaker 2: or they eat, you know, a hamburger or a hot dog here, 457 00:21:48,480 --> 00:21:51,760 Speaker 2: that money goes to support the zoo in all of 458 00:21:51,760 --> 00:21:52,720 Speaker 2: our conservation work. 459 00:21:53,440 --> 00:21:56,680 Speaker 1: So if somebody wants to know something about the National Zoo, 460 00:21:56,680 --> 00:21:59,400 Speaker 1: and you've got two or three sentences, you can give them. 461 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:02,160 Speaker 1: What is a summary of at the National Zoo, Why 462 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:04,480 Speaker 1: is it so great? And why should somebody visit the 463 00:22:04,520 --> 00:22:05,200 Speaker 1: National Zoo. 464 00:22:06,200 --> 00:22:09,399 Speaker 2: National Zoo is part of Smithsonian. We are free, we 465 00:22:09,520 --> 00:22:13,400 Speaker 2: are open and welcome to everyone. And when you come here, 466 00:22:13,880 --> 00:22:15,879 Speaker 2: you are not just seeing the animals, You are not 467 00:22:15,960 --> 00:22:18,320 Speaker 2: just having an incredible time that will stay with you 468 00:22:18,400 --> 00:22:20,560 Speaker 2: and your family, through the rest of your lives. You 469 00:22:20,640 --> 00:22:23,159 Speaker 2: are part of our conservation success. 470 00:22:23,920 --> 00:22:26,439 Speaker 1: Thanks for listening to hear more of my interviews. You 471 00:22:26,480 --> 00:22:30,560 Speaker 1: can subscribe and download my podcast on Spotify, Apple, or 472 00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:31,439 Speaker 1: wherever you listen.