About 2,000 visitors thanked three giant pandas in a ceremony at a theme park in western Japan on Tuesday, one day before they leave for China.
The three are among seven pandas kept at Adventure World in the town of Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture.
The three are 30-year-old Eimei, nicknamed "Super Papa" for fathering 16 cubs at the park, and his eight-year-old female twins Ouhin and Touhin.
After live footage of the pandas was shown, a video was played to show Eimei's 28 years at the park, and the growth of the twins.
Keeper Shinagawa Yuka said she looks forward to seeing Ouhin and Touhin find partners and give birth.
She said she hopes Eimei will eat a lot of bamboo and live long.
The pandas will leave the park on Wednesday for China's Sichuan Province, accompanied by zoo staff members.