by Xinhua writer Liu Yanan

ATLANTA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- "We were very excited to be able to have giant pandas return to Zoo Atlanta after a long two years," Gina Ferrie, vice president of collections and conservation at Zoo Atlanta, told Xinhua.

A chartered cargo plane carrying a new pair of Chinese giant pandas, Ping Ping and Fu Shuang, landed in Atlanta on Sunday morning. They are expected to stay at Zoo Atlanta for 10 years.

The zoo, the Atlanta community and people across the United States had eagerly awaited the return of Chinese giant pandas to Zoo Atlanta, Ferrie told Xinhua in an interview on Thursday.

Ferrie said the zoo had been preparing for the arrival of Ping Ping and Fu Shuang since the previous pair of giant pandas and their offspring left in October 2024.

"We have added many enhancements to their habitat, including new day rooms that have much more room and very top-of-the-line zoological lighting and floors and other conditions to give them the best welfare," she said.

The giant pandas will have more than 30 days to adjust and get used to the new bamboo and their new caretakers, said Ferrie.

"We will keep them very quiet and comfortable while they adjust. And then we will be very excited to share them and get our community and the people across the United States to meet them," Ferrie said.

China and Zoo Atlanta have collaborated on giant panda conservation research for more than two decades, achieving a series of important results, including the birth of seven giant panda cubs in five litters.

In October 2024, Lun Lun, Yang Yang and their twin daughters, Ya Lun and Xi Lun, returned to China from Zoo Atlanta.