WASHINGTON — It's a panda party at the Smithsonian's National Zoo. Female panda Qing Bao will celebrate her fourth birthday with festivities starting at 9 a.m. Friday.

Qing Bao arrived in D.C. along with her potential future mate, Bao Li, in mid-October 2024 from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Sichuan, China. Bao Li is also the relative of a former D.C. zoo resident Bao Bao, who was born at the zoo in 2018.

If you can't make it out to the zoo to see the festivities in person, you can always catch the panda fun on the zoo's Giant Panda Cam . And if you ever have trouble telling Bao Li and Qing Bao apart, here are a few things to look out for:

Size: Bao Li is larger

Face shape: Qing Bao has fluffier cheeks

Back bands: Bao Li's band is thicker

Birthmarks: Qing Ba

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