Recently, as it became known that the baby panda Fubao would have to go to China to find a mate next year, not only the media but also many celebrities and influencers posted visits on social media, raising interest in Fubao.
According to Everland, interest in pandas has recently skyrocketed, and more and more people are visiting Everland's Panda World, where the baby panda Fubao and her parents, Aibao and Lebao, live.
The average number of visitors to Panda World in the first week of June was about 10,000, which is twice as high as the first week of May, when holidays such as Labor Day and Children's Day continued.
This is an increase of more than 30% compared to the previous week.
She is called by various nicknames such as Yongin Pussi, Purinses, Putundun, Puyomi, and Pudongle, and has been loved by fans since she was born in July 2020.
Famous celebrities and celebrities also fall for the charm of Fubao and continue to pay attention. The story of Fubao keeper experience together with Sakura of Le Seraphim and Skeleton Gold Medalist at the Pyeongchang Olympics Skeleton Seongbin Yun has exceeded 1.2 million views on YouTube.
The video of NCT Taeyong visiting Panda World had 170,000 views in two days, and another member, Jungwoo, tweeted, "I want to see Fu Bao. Don't you have a fan signing event?" is receiving
While communicating with fans online, Seulgi of Red Velvet did not hide her affection for Fu Bao, saying that she was watching a 40-minute video of Fu Bao.
Seulgi always draws a bear when signing autographs for her fans, and the animal that symbolizes Seulgi used to be a bear, but in the future she wants to change it to a panda.
It appeared frequently on radio and news show programs, and Fu Bao introduced the reason why he had to go to China to find a mate and the feelings of people who were sad.
A radio listener said, "Watching Fu Bao's video and eating something delicious relieves stress."
In an interview with the media, Zookeeper Kang Cheol-won of Everland Zoo, who is known as 'Fubao's Grandpa', said, "Next year, when Fubao reaches sexual maturity, he will leave for China to meet a mate." . Since I am a zookeeper, I want to think from the side of animals first.”
Meanwhile, Everland Panda World, which opened in 2016, is currently the only space in Korea where you can experience pandas. There is a family of three pandas, including Fubao (female), who was born.
Like other pandas, an endangered species with only about 1,800 left in the world, Fubao will be leaving for China to meet a new mate sometime next year, when he turns 4, but no specific date has been set yet.
Reporter Yoon Jun-ho, Ten Asia delo410@tenasia.co.kr