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Pair of Giant Pandas from China Arrive Safely at San Diego Zoo

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agencym, giant panda Yun Chuan eats at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Yanan, southwest China's Sichuan Province on April 18, 2024. (Xue Chen/Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agencym, giant panda Yun Chuan eats at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Yanan, southwest China's Sichuan Province on April 18, 2024. (Xue Chen/Xinhua via AP)
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Pair of Giant Pandas from China Arrive Safely at San Diego Zoo

In this photo released by Xinhua News Agencym, giant panda Yun Chuan eats at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Yanan, southwest China's Sichuan Province on April 18, 2024. (Xue Chen/Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agencym, giant panda Yun Chuan eats at the Bifengxia Panda Base of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Yanan, southwest China's Sichuan Province on April 18, 2024. (Xue Chen/Xinhua via AP)

Two giant pandas from China have safely arrived in Southern California, where they will be cared for as part of an ongoing conservation partnership, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance said Friday.
The pandas, Yun Chuan and Xin Bao, will spend the next several weeks acclimating to their new home in a private habitat at the San Diego Zoo and will not be viewable by the public, the alliance said in a brief statement.
“They are being monitored closely by expert wildlife health and care teams who will determine when the pair are ready to meet the public,” The Associated Press quoted the alliance as saying.
A farewell ceremony was held earlier this week before the pandas departed from China.
Yun Chuan, a mild-mannered male who’s nearly 5 years old, has connections to California, the wildlife alliance said previously. His mother, Zhen Zhen, was born at the San Diego Zoo in 2007 to parents Bai Yun and Gao Gao.
Xin Bao is a nearly 4-year-old female described as “a gentle and witty introvert with a sweet round face and big ears.”
The San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has a nearly 30-year partnership with leading conservation institutions in China focused on protecting and recovering giant pandas and the bamboo forests they depend on.

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Biscuit Portraits of Famous British People

Mosaic artist Ed Chapman has depicted famous British people in biscuit form to mark 100 years of McVitie’s chocolate digestive
Mosaic artist Ed Chapman has depicted famous British people in biscuit form to mark 100 years of McVitie’s chocolate digestive
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Biscuit Portraits of Famous British People

Mosaic artist Ed Chapman has depicted famous British people in biscuit form to mark 100 years of McVitie’s chocolate digestive
Mosaic artist Ed Chapman has depicted famous British people in biscuit form to mark 100 years of McVitie’s chocolate digestive

London-based artist Ed Chapman has created biscuit portraits of famous British people to mark the 100th anniversary of the McVitie’s digestive biscuit range.

The mosaic artist said he had some “trepidation” when McVitie's called and asked him to make some famous portraits out of biscuits.

“I wondered if the portraits could be done with biscuits, I thought surely they're going to be crumbling all over the place,” Chapman said, according to BBC.

“I immediately went out and bought some biscuits to try them out and tested out how it might work - eventually I found my way with them,” he said.

Asked how it was possible to make such vivid portraits out of digestives, he said: “I initially thought they were all quite similar, but actually there's a white chocolate, gold chocolate, dark chocolate and of course the milk chocolate, and if you flip them over, there's the biscuit side which is plain, so there's a few grades of color and tones there - it's a palette.”

He added, “When I started this, I didn't think about the warm weather. Thankfully I've got a north facing studio, but I kept them in the fridge as they were easier to cut.

Chapman explained the current warm spell is a bit of a worry, but said: “I've protected them with several layers of varnish so, I'm not saying they're indestructible, but they should certainly last - they wouldn't last in the direct sun though.”

The artist said it took about 180 hours to make the three portraits and he used “thousands” of biscuits, which were supplied by McVitie's.

Chapman said the work had already been getting good feedback and attention online.

The mosaic artist has also done campaigns for other companies, including Keep Britain Tidy.

The pictures will be displayed on The Strand from 2 to 5 May.