A giant panda named Lun Lun gave birth Monday at Zoo Atlanta to two tiny cubs, the first twin pandas born in the United States since 1987, zoo spokeswoman Keisha Hines announced.
The 15-year-old panda went into labor Monday afternoon and gave birth to the first cub at 6:21 p.m. EDT and the second two minutes later. Hines said zookeepers who had been anticipating only one cub based on a recent ultrasound were surprised by the first-ever twin panda births at Zoo Atlanta.
"We have twins!" Zoo Atlanta announced on its website.
An ultrasound on June 30 determined that Lun Lun was pregnant with her fourth cub. Hines says zookeepers weren't expecting the tiny duo, however.
The twin cubs are the first giant pandas to be born in the United States in 2013, Hines added.
Zoo officials are working with animal care workers from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, where Lun Lun and her 15-year-old partner, Yang Yang, were born. There was no immediate report on the size or weight of the cubs at birth, nor the condition of the offspring and mother.
Zookeepers said Lun Lun is caring for one of the cubs while animal management and veterinary teams from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant Panda Center care for the other in a nursery center. Officials said they will likely rotate the cubs between the nursery and Lun Lun's care to ensure they each get enough maternal nurturing without overexerting the 15-year-old giant panda.
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WFSB 3 Connecticut
The 15-year-old panda went into labor Monday afternoon and gave birth to the first cub at 6:21 p.m. EDT and the second two minutes later. Hines said zookeepers who had been anticipating only one cub based on a recent ultrasound were surprised by the first-ever twin panda births at Zoo Atlanta.
"We have twins!" Zoo Atlanta announced on its website.
An ultrasound on June 30 determined that Lun Lun was pregnant with her fourth cub. Hines says zookeepers weren't expecting the tiny duo, however.
The twin cubs are the first giant pandas to be born in the United States in 2013, Hines added.
Zoo officials are working with animal care workers from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, where Lun Lun and her 15-year-old partner, Yang Yang, were born. There was no immediate report on the size or weight of the cubs at birth, nor the condition of the offspring and mother.
Zookeepers said Lun Lun is caring for one of the cubs while animal management and veterinary teams from the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant Panda Center care for the other in a nursery center. Officials said they will likely rotate the cubs between the nursery and Lun Lun's care to ensure they each get enough maternal nurturing without overexerting the 15-year-old giant panda.
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Wow, that is amazing.I hope all goes well for them. Thank you for sharing this.
Ummm these twins are almost 1 yr old !!!!...you can watch them on panda cam :)