Chi Chi was a well-known giant panda at London Zoo in England. Chi Chi was not London Zoo's first giant panda; Ming was one of four that arrived in 1938. However, it was Chi Chi who became the Zoo's star attraction and Britain's best-loved zoo animal. She was born in 1957, caught in December 1957 in Sichuan and moved to Peking Zoo in January 1958.

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  • Chi Chi was a well-known giant panda at London Zoo in England. Chi Chi was not London Zoo's first giant panda; Ming was one of four that arrived in 1938. However, it was Chi Chi who became the Zoo's star attraction and Britain's best-loved zoo animal. She was born in 1957, caught in December 1957 in Sichuan and moved to Peking Zoo in January 1958. The Austrian animal broker Heini Demmer acquired Chi Chi in exchange for an impressive collection of African hoofstock in May 1958 and brought the animal to Moscow Zoo. After a rest of a week the panda went on journey to Tierpark Berlin, the zoo in the eastern part of the then divided city. By then Chi Chi had already been sold to a zoo in the United States, but the American government had ceased all trade with communist China for political reasons. Thus, Chi Chi was refused entry to the USA. Frankfurt Zoo provided a temporary home for the panda until Demmer decided to hire the animal out to European zoos for limited time. Next visit was Copenhagen Zoo, before Chi Chi arrived at London Zoo on 5 September 1958. The Zoological Society of London had stated that it would not encourage collection of wild pandas, but accepted Chi Chi since she had already been collected. Although Chi Chi's visit was originally planned to last for only three weeks, it would decided to buy her for the amount of GBP 12,000. Chi Chi became property of London Zoo on 26 September 1958. Chi Chi was an inspiration for Sir Peter Scott's simple but distinctive black and white design used as the logo of the World Wildlife Fund. There were unsuccessful attempts to mate Chi Chi with Moscow Zoo's An An. Chi Chi died on 22 July 1972 and was mourned by the nation. Her remains, now a stuffed exhibit, sit in a glass case, adjacent to the cafe at London's Natural History Museum.
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  • Chi Chi was a well-known giant panda at London Zoo in England. Chi Chi was not London Zoo's first giant panda; Ming was one of four that arrived in 1938. However, it was Chi Chi who became the Zoo's star attraction and Britain's best-loved zoo animal. She was born in 1957, caught in December 1957 in Sichuan and moved to Peking Zoo in January 1958.
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  • Chi Chi (giant panda)
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