The Price of Two New Giant Pandas

Last fall Mei Xiang, Tian Tian, and their son, Xiao Qi Ji, left Washington D.C.’s National Zoo. Then, also bound for China, by December, Lun Lun, Yang Yang and their 7-year-old twins Ya Lun and Xi Lun will leave Atlanta.

With no remaining giant pandas, it appeared that, responding to U.S tension, China would not replace them.

But now they said Bao Li, 2, a male, and Qing Bao, 2, a female would head for D.C.

Below, in this National Zoo family tree, you can see that soon-to-arrive Bao Li is Bao Bao’s son:

Giant Panda Economics

As always (because China owns them), the two giant pandas will cost the Smithsonian National Zoo an annual rental fee. At $1 million a year for 10 years, the payments go to the China Wildlife and Conservation Association. Then, if the contract is like past deals, it costs an extra $400,000 if any cubs are born (and they must be returned–though not immediately). In addition, I am not sure if the old enclosure will be sufficient or if they have a housing expense. And, we have not even gotten to the huge quantity of bamboo they eat every day. Because of inefficient digestion (most of what goes in, goes out), they have to chomp on 70 to 100 pounds of bamboo each day for adequate nutrition. Then also, there is the medical care and the upkeep they require. Costing five times as much as the elephants, pandas are a zoo’s most expensive resident.

Giant Panda Tradeoffs

So, as economists, we can ask if pandas are worth it. Thinking of tradeoffs, we hit the problem of the unquantifiable. There is huge value in the panda conservation that zoo fees provide China. Also, we cannot place a dollar value on the joy of seeing pandas play:

Our Bottom Line: Zoo Economics

As businesses, zoos are unusual. Except for panda fees, they do not pay for their inventory. Instead, since the 1970s, they’ve bartered, borrowed, and donated their wildlife. The goal is to avoid putting a price tag on an animal.

For example, Boston’s New England Aquarium wanted some lookdown fish. Hearing that a North Carolina aquarium had some extras, they had to locate the jellyfish and snipe fish that the North Carolinians needed. Having jellyfish but no snipe fish, they made a trade with a Japanese aquarium to get them. Somewhat differently, when a Calgary Zoo decided its Sri Lankan elephants would fare better in a warmer climate, they just gave them to the Washington D.C. zoo. But then (having created good karma according to NPR) the Calgary Zoo got an Indian Rhino.

On the revenue side, as not-for-profits, zoos raise money from donations, wildlife “adoptions,” assorted fundraisers, merchandise sales, government support. They also enjoy an admissions boost from giant pandas.

My sources and more: These two Washington Post articles, here, and here had the panda facts while NPR and smartasset told about zoo economics. Please note also that several of today’s sentences were in a previous econlife post.