A 16-year-old giant panda gave birth to a pair of twins at Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda located in southwest China’s Sichuan Province during the early hours of Aug 9th. The male and female cub weighed in at 195.5 and 152.8 grams. Both are in good condition.
The mother, Chenggong, gave birth to the panda cubs around 1:34 am, base staff member Wu Kongju said, noting that Chenggong’s labor lasted 14 hours. “This is Chenggong’s third birth. She is a very good mother. After the cubs were born, she cuddled them and comforted them,” Wu said.
July to September is the high season for panda births. The twins are the eighth pair of twins born in the Chengdu base this year along with five single cubs. There are now more than 1,300 wild pandas in Sichuan, 15 percent more than 10 years ago, and 360 more are in captivity.