VIDEO: National Zoo giant panda Mei Xiang caught frolicking in first snow of season
WASHINGTON - Mei Xiang, a giant panda at the Smithsonian's National Zoo, got to spend some time outside playing in the snow on Saturday.
The National Zoo posted a video on social media showing Mei Xiang rolling and playing in the leaves covered with snow.
The giant pandas are native to the western mountains in China, and are used to the cold weather.
In fact, the zoo says the pandas are "actually more active in the wintertime."
The pandas have a habitat in the high elevations of the mountains, and they say it generally is damper than winter weather in D.C., but as far as temperature goes, they say the two climates are very similar.
There are many animals at the National Zoo that enjoy playing in the snow, like cheetahs and red pandas. Zoo provides them with a habitat that while outdoors, has some heated den areas to keep warm.
The Zoo has photos of other animals in the snow on their Flickr page.