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San Diego - In appreciation for the community's continued support of the giant panda conservation program, the San Diego Zoo is asking its visitors to become personally involved in the naming of the newborn giant panda cub. Guests to the Zoo's Giant Panda Research Station between Friday, Oct. 5 and Sunday, Oct. 14 can suggest a name for the female cub.

"We would like to express our gratitude to everyone for their interest and support of giant pandas," said Douglas Myers, Zoological Society of San Diego chief executive officer. "Rallying together is the only way to save this critically endangered species and others like it. We cannot support conservation without the community."

After the 10-day period, the Zoo's giant panda team, comprised of keepers, veterinarians, scientists and others, will choose several names from those suggested by Zoo visitors based on certain criteria. The names should be in Chinese (pinyin), have an English translation, be symbolic in meaning and delivered in person to the Zoo.

The selected names will then be reviewed by the Chinese Wildlife Conservation Association and those approved will be posted later this month on the Zoo's Web site at www.sandiegozoo.org for a final vote by the global community. Check the Zoo Web site for updates on when to vote online and to see the cub live through Panda Cam.

This is the first time the Zoo has given the public an opportunity to be heavily involved in the naming of a giant panda cub. In 1999, China named the first cub born at the San Diego Zoo Hua Mei "China USA". The Zoo's panda team named the cub born in 2005 Mei Sheng "born in the USA". While in 2005, a poll with five names was posted on the Zoo's Web site for a global vote. Su Lin "a little bit of something very cute" was the winning name.

The 100-acre San Diego Zoo is operated by the not-for-profit Zoological Society of San Diego. The Zoological Society, dedicated to the conservation of endangered species and their habitats, engages in conservation and research work around the globe and is responsible for maintaining accredited horticultural, animal, library, and photo collections. The Zoological Society also manages the 1,800-acre San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park (more than half of which has been set aside as protected native species habitat) and the center for Conservation and Research for Endangered Species (CRES). The important conservation and science work of these entities is supported in part by the Foundation for the Zoological Society of San Diego.