How are the new giant pandas spending their first summer in Washington, D.C.? And what’s changed since they arrived nine months ago? We interviewed giant panda keeper Mariel Lally for an update on what’s happening lately with the Zoo’s two giant pandas, Bao Li and Qing Bao.

Despite Washington’s humidity, the pandas are thriving this summer—mostly by staying indoors and napping.

To conserve energy during the hottest part of the year, giant pandas spend a little more time sleeping than they would in the fall or winter. When Bao Li and Qing Bao are awake, they usually prefer to eat bamboo and play with enrichment items indoors, said Lally.

No matter what time of year, the two pandas have the ability to move between their indoor and outdoor habitats whenever they’d like. “But when you’re a

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