Australian and Chinese officials urged two bamboo-munching giant pandas on Sunday to consider reproducing during their 10-year residency Down Under. Wang Wang and Funi, on loan from China, arrived at the Adelaide Zoo in Australia two weeks ago but were officially welcomed Sunday by leaders at the opening ceremony of their 8 million Australian dollar ($7.25 million) enclosure. Their exhibit opened to the public on Monday. "Look after yourselves, keep healthy and active, eat your greens and maybe, when the time is right, think about starting a family," Governor General Quentin Bryce said in a speech directed at Funi and Wang Wang, who were sprawled against nearby boulders, chewing bamboo shoots. "There are not enough of you in this world." Chinese Ambassador Zhang Junsai said he was already thinking of Australian names for a possible panda cub. "Wang Wang and Funi carry the friendship and greetings from the Chinese people," he told the gathering, explaining that Funi means "Lucky Girl" and Wang Wang means "Net Net." "Who can rule out the possibility that the lucky girl will fall into the net of love and later have a lovely baby?" Zhang said. "This would be a great achievement of the joint Australia-China conservation program." The pandas, 3 and 4 years old, are the only giant pandas in the southern hemisphere. Chinese President Hu Jintao offered the pandas as a goodwill gesture during a 2007 visit to Australia.
Every so often in the Washington Metro subway system, a foot gets caught in an escalator. Usually, the culprit is a shoe lace or a flip-flop. On Monday, it was a bird's talon. D.C. fire department spokesman Pete Piringer says rescuers were called to the Benning Road station in northeast Washington shortly after 8 a.m. Monday. A large bird of prey -- possibly a hawk or a falcon -- had its foot stuck in the escalator. Metro employees shut off the power, and a passer-by held the bird to keep it from injuring itself more. When firefighters arrived, they removed a portion of the escalator to free the bird. Piringer says that despite a slightly injured foot, the bird flew to the top of a nearby gas station, where it sat for a while before continuing on its way.
A 34-year-old Florida woman plans to be a graduate and bride on the same day in Iowa. Tricia Giordano said she has always been the kind of person who loves to stay busy. She was scheduled to get her degree on Saturday afternoon at Ashford University in Clinton, Iowa. Shortly after that, she planned to head across campus to the chapel and swap her cap and gown for a wedding dress. Giordano is from Tampa, Fla., and she said it would have been too difficult for her and her fiance, Rich Munsey, to get all the relatives from different states together. But the graduation in Iowa seemed to work for everyone. The couple plans to move back to Florida.
A 25-year-old man suspected of breaking into an east Texas house is jailed after police found him taking a bath in the house. The incident happened about 3:30 a.m. Sunday in a blue-collar neighborhood of northwest Tyler. Police Sgt. Matthew Smyser said a resident called to report that a man had kicked in the front door of the house. While en route, officers were advised the resident had left the house but the intruder remained inside. Officers entered the house to find the man had stripped and was taking a bath. After a brief struggle, the man was arrested and booked into the Smith County Jail. Larry Ticey was jailed on a misdemeanor criminal trespass charge punishable upon conviction by up to one year in jail. No bond amount or attorney is listed in jail records.
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Mid-Daily Items: Officials urge pandas to reproduce
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