The World's Only Surviving Panda Triplets Born In Chinese Zoo Are Ridiculously Adorable
A zoo in southern China has unveiled absolutely adorable and ridiculously tiny newborn panda triplets, thought to be the world's first known surviving trio. Now that's one rare and random trivia there for you, so go on, check them out and enjoy our RANDOM WEDNESDAY column filled with pictures and video of cute panda cubs.
By Sadho Ram — 13 Aug 2014, 10:12 AM — Updated over 10 years ago
On 12 August 2014, Guangzhou's Chimelong Safari Park in China presented the world with these adorable set of panda triplets
The three cubs were born at Chimelong Safari Park in south China's Guangdong province
Image via (AP Photo) CHINA OUTThe cubs were born on 29 July but breeders delayed the announcement until they were sure all three would survive. According to the safari park's statement, these are the only panda triplets to have survived this far.
The cubs are "the only panda triplets that have ever survived," the zoo said in a statement released on Tuesday, but it added that the newborn mortality rate among pandas is "extremely high".
The mother panda, named Juxiao, meaning "chrysanthemum smile", was too exhausted to take care of them after her delivery. However, she is now nursing the triplets with assistance from feeders throughout the day.
Juxiao was too exhausted to take care of her triplets when they were first born
Image via bbcimg.co.ukFemale pandas are able to conceive for only two or three days a year, leading to a very low reproduction rate.
China's leading panda authority, the Sichuan Wolong National Natural Reserve, has said that although the pandas are still too young to call "surviving", they are the first known living panda triplets
"We can only say they are surviving once they reach six months. For now they are indeed the only surviving triplets,” said an official from the centre who only gave her name as Ms Zhao.
“The triplets can be described as a new wonder of the world,” Chimelong Safari Park said, describing mortality rates among newborn pandas as “extremely high”.
Panda cubs are 900 times smaller than their Mother. Meanwhile, these cubs have not been named yet and their genders are yet to be announced.
The hoopla surrounding the panda cubs comes because the animals, notoriously uninterested in sex and famously choosy about mates, only have a window of several days to conceive each year
As of 2004, there were only about 1,600 pandas believed to be left in the wild. Of course, the triplets aren’t out of the woods yet. According to the Associated Press, 26% of male panda cubs and 20% of females die within their first year.
According to the San Diego Zoo, panda cubs usually open their eyes at around 50 to 60 days and begin crawling by about 10 weeks. The zoo also notes that sometimes pandas can become pregnant with more than one cub but only give birth to one, as their bodies reabsorb the other embryos.
The cubs' birth is being hailed as a "miracle" and proof of China's success with artificial insemination procedures
Pictures taken earlier this month of the triplets showed the pink-coloured cubs inside an incubator with their eyes closed and bodies sparsely covered with white fur. “The mother and babies were in good condition, but the adorable newborns were particularly inspiring,” the zoo said.
The first known case of giant panda triplets was recorded in 1999
In the year 1999 a 15-year-old mother gave birth following artificial insemination in the south-western Chinese city of Chengdu. The youngest of the three died of a bladder infection after three days.
theguardian.com