Vienna zoo gets male panda as partner for longtime resident

BERLIN – A 19-year-old male giant panda has arrived at Vienna's Schoenbrunn zoo, more than two years after his predecessor died.

Yuan Yuan, who arrived on Tuesday evening, was chosen as a partner for Yang Yang, the zoo's 18-year-old female panda. The zoo said Wednesday that he will be introduced to the public at the end of May once he is out of quarantine.

Schoenbrunn has been home to pandas since 2003, when Yang Yang and male Long Hui arrived. China lends the rare bears to other countries as a sign of goodwill in what is known as "panda diplomacy."

Long Hui died in December 2016 while undergoing an examination for a tumor, which zoo officials said was malignant and inoperable. He had fathered twins months earlier.