Tian Tian, the giant panda resident at Washington DC's National Zoo, attempted a strange but graceful dismount from a tree branch in this funny clip.

The zoo was closed as part of the government shutdown, and was only reopened on Tuesday morning (January 29) to visitors, when this clip was filmed.

The filmer commented: "Tian Tian, at 21 years of age, is considered “elderly” for his species, but while we watched, he showed off his climbing skills in this tree, including a perfect dismount which is rather unusual for a giant panda since they don’t tend to be terribly graceful."

"Tian Tian is a rock star in the giant panda world having sired three very popular offspring, one of whom is still living in Washington, DC."

Following a one month government shutdown, Tian Tian, the 21 year-old patriarch of the National Zoo's giant panda family shows his fans he still has what it takes...