The two giant pandas living at Ouwehands Zoo in the Dutch city of Rhenen staged an enchanting debut for hundreds of long-awaited admirers on Tuesday afternoon, marking the culmination of a 16-year dream for the zoo and Dutch officials.

After six weeks in quarantine since their arrival on April 12, Wu Wen, the female giant panda, made tentative steps into her outdoor enclosure. Nonchalant at the gaze of dozens of children, she threw herself at the first bamboo plant she saw and started to eat.

Female giant panda Wu Wen discovers her new enclosure during an official unveiling ceremony at Ouwehands Zoo on May 30, 2017 in Rhenen, the Netherlands. /VCG Ph

Xing Ya, the male, strode out of his court like an emperor inspecting his new territory. He patrolled the grassland, tested a shallow rig, pawed the wooden wall, and tried to climb up a trunk, which was unable to hold his heavy body.

Male giant panda, Xing Ya, patrolls the grassland at the Ouwehands Zoo in Rhenen. /VCG Photo

"Both are in perfect health and adapted well to their new home," said Zhang Hongwen, chief economist of China's State Forestry Administration.

The pair, both three-and-a-half-years-old, will stay at Ouwenhands for 15 years. Native to south central China, they belong to a conservation reliant vulnerable species, which count only 1,864 individuals.

"I am glad to see that Wu Wen and Xing Ya are so popular in the Netherlands. Living at this wonderful residence modeled after a Chinese palace, they are really treated as emperor and empress," said Zhang, adding that their stay will surely boost Sino-Dutch cooperation relating to the protection of forestry and bio-diversity.

The public visit giant panda Wu Wen during the official opening of the panda base Pandasia at the Ouwehand Zoo in Rhenen on May 30, 2017. /VCG Photo‍

For Martijn van Dam, Dutch State Secretary for Economic Affairs, "the Netherlands has already enclosed Wu Wen and Xing Ya in its heart".

"From today on, Dutch children will get to know Wu Wen and Xing Ya....They can get inspired by all the beautiful and powerful things nature has to offer. Hopefully, new nature protectors will arise here at this place," he said.

The Dutch official hailed 45 years of good cooperation between his country and China.

"Wu Wen and Xing Ya underline these good developments. Let this be a sign of hope that with joint forces we can protect our nature worldwide, and let this be the beginning of a wave of inspiration for the new generation."

The male panda Xing Ya /VCG Photo

Jan Peter Balkenende, Former Dutch Prime Minister who played a role in the panda cooperation project, told the audience that "if pandas are lent to a country, it is an expression of friendship and connection."

He stressed on "panda-potentials", which will invite old and young people to reflect on the nature, to increase knowledge and to achieve business success.

Marcel Boekhoorn, owner of the zoo, beamed with happiness.

The giant panda base "Pandasia" at Ouwehand Zoo in Rhenen /VCG Photo

Following a 16-year period of consultations and preparations, the two pandas were symbolically gifted to the Netherlands by China during the state visit of Dutch Royal Couple in October 2015.

"In China where during many trips we learned from our Chinese friends how giant pandas live and how we can protect these endangered animals. Now is the moment to share this dream with the whole of the Netherlands," Boekhoorn told guests invited to the official opening of Pandasia, the special complex "built with lots of love and attention" for Wu Wen and Xing Ya.

During the precious three days of mating time every year, Wu Wen and Xing Ya will be invited to "get together" if they like each other, said the zoo owner.

The inside of the giant panda base "Pandasia" at Ouwehand Zoo in Rhenen /VCG Photo

This adorable, cuddly and previous animal also helps zoos raise prestige, extra money with more visitors, in the light of the cases of other foreign zoos like the National Zoo and San Diego Zoo in the US, and the Edinburgh Zoo in the UK.

“There is a power to having pandas that allows a zoo to raise awareness among the public,” Christina Simmons, public relations manager for the San Diego Zoo, told Omaha World-Herald. “And it allows it to raise money for conservation to do other important work.”

(Source: Xinhua, AFP)