Atlanta Zoo Pandas

[Kris G.]

Another video of the 1st birthday festivities!

Twin Panda Cubs Enjoy Their 1st Birthday Ice Cakes

[Kris G.]

Will there be a new cub(s) later on this year?

http://zooatlanta.org/home/article_content/panda_breeding_lun_lun?utm_referrer=http%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com&utm_referrer=direct%2Fnot%20provided

[Kris G.]

From Zoo Atlanta!   

Lun Lun the giant panda is expecting
Thursday, August 18, 2016

Pregnancy confirmed via ultrasound and hormone analyses; 24-hour birthwatch begins August 22

Lun Lun the giant panda has been confirmed to be expecting a cub. On August 16, the Zoo Atlanta Veterinary Team obtained an ultrasound image of a fetus measuring 0.78 centimeter (a third of an inch), and supporting hormone analyses and monitoring of Lun Lun’s behavior suggest that a birth could take place within three weeks. Beginning on Monday, August 22, the Animal Management and Veterinary Teams will begin 24-hour monitoring of Lun Lun as she nests in her off-exhibit den in The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant Panda Conservation Center.

The teams remain optimistic that the newest addition to the Zoo Atlanta giant panda program is on the way; however, there is still no certainty of an impending birth. Fetal reabsorption is not uncommon in giant pandas, so the possibility remains that the pregnancy could fail. Because of the difficulty in obtaining ultrasounds of Lun Lun’s entire uterus, there is also no certainty that there is not more than one fetus present.

Lun Lun was artificially inseminated on March 28, 2016. Since that time, the teams have continued to review hormone analyses conducted by David Kersey, PhD, an expert in giant panda endocrinology from Western University of Health Sciences. The Veterinary Team will continue to pursue regular ultrasounds, but as ultrasound participation is voluntary for Lun Lun, there is no guarantee of additional ultrasounds before a birth takes place.

Giant pandas represent Zoo Atlanta’s most significant financial investment in conservation. Fewer than 1,900 giant pandas are estimated to remain in the wild in China’s Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces, and more than 1,200 of these live inside nature reserves. Support from Zoo Atlanta benefits wild giant pandas living on eight of these reserves.

A new cub, which would be the first giant panda born in the U.S. in 2016, would be the sixth for 18-year-old Lun Lun and 18-year-old male Yang Yang. The pair’s first, second and third offspring, Mei Lan, Xi Lan and Po, now reside at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China. Their fourth and fifth, 3-year-old females Mei Lun and Mei Huan, reside at Zoo Atlanta and are the only twin giant pandas in the U.S.

Tune in to PandaCam hosted by Animal Planet L!VE on zooatlanta.org to join Lun Lun and the Zoo Atlanta family in preparing for a birth, and stay tuned for updates.

[Dumpsterkitty]

From Zoo Atlanta!   

Lun Lun the giant panda is expecting
Thursday, August 18, 2016

 

[Kris G.]

             

Lun Lun the giant panda is expecting twins!
Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Zoo Atlanta Veterinary Team has confirmed the presence of a second fetus on ultrasound; birthwatch began August 22

Lun Lun the giant panda has been confirmed to be expecting twins. The Zoo Atlanta Veterinary Team obtained an ultrasound image confirming the presence of a second fetus on August 22, 2016.

The Animal Management and Veterinary Teams confirmed Lun Lun’s pregnancy via ultrasound on August 16, with an image of a fetus measuring 0.78 centimeters. As of August 22, that fetus measured 2.68 centimeters, and the second fetus measured 2.19 centimeters.

Round-the-clock birthwatch began on August 22, but there is still no certainty of impending births, as fetal reabsorption is not uncommon in giant pandas. Ultrasound participation is voluntary for Lun Lun, so there is no guarantee that the team will be able to obtain additional ultrasounds prior to a birth.

Lun Lun, who turns 19 on Thursday, August 25, is the mother of the only pair of giant panda twins in the U.S., 3-year-olds Mei Lun and Mei Huan. While it is estimated that giant pandas give birth to twins approximately 50 percent of the time, wild giant panda mothers will typically care for only one cub. Advances in animal care and veterinary care in zoos have resulted in successful rearing of twins both in the zoological population in China and in zoos outside China.

Join the Zoo Atlanta family in preparing for a birth by tuning in to PandaCam hosted by Animal Planet L!VE on www.zooatlanta.org. Stay tuned for updates.

[Kris G.]

From Zoo Atlanta website

Giant panda cub born at Zoo Atlanta
Saturday, September 3, 2016

Lun Lun has been confirmed to be expecting twins, but only one cub has been born so far

Lun Lun, a 19-year-old giant panda at Zoo Atlanta, gave birth to a single cub at 7:20 a.m. on September 3, 2016. As recent ultrasounds have confirmed that Lun Lun was carrying twins, birthwatch continues for the delivery of her second cub. The Animal Management and Veterinary Teams are monitoring the single cub and Lun Lun, who appears to be providing appropriate maternal care.

It is possible for giant panda twins to be born days apart. While the Animal Management and Veterinary Teams continue 24-hour watch for the birth of the second cub, there remains the possibility that the second fetus may be resorbed, or reabsorbed, and will thus not be born. Fetal resorption is not uncommon in giant pandas, and may happen at any time during a giant panda pregnancy. As recently as an August 28 ultrasound, the Veterinary Team had detected the presence of two fetuses with heartbeats.

“We’re very excited about welcoming a new giant panda cub and continue to remain optimistic for the arrival of its twin. Because we know that giant panda fetuses can be resorbed, resulting in failed pregnancies, we are aware that this could be a possible outcome,� said Hayley Murphy, DVM, Vice President of Animal Divisions. “We continue to keep a close eye on Lun Lun and her newborn to ensure that the cub has the best possible chance of thriving.�

Giant panda cubs, which are born nearly hairless, blind and barely larger than a small cell phone, are some of the animal kingdom’s most fragile newborns, and their early days of life are critical. A preliminary veterinary checkup will be performed as soon as the team is able to temporarily remove the cub without disrupting Lun Lun’s care. The Zoo team is joined by two colleagues from the Zoo’s partner in giant panda conservation, the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding.

Lun Lun was artificially inseminated on March 28, 2016, and round-the-clock birthwatch began on August 22, 2016. Since the time of the artificial insemination, the Animal Management and Veterinary Teams have been conducting regular ultrasounds and monitoring Lun Lun’s behavior, as well as monitoring hormone analyses conducted by David Kersey, PhD, an expert in giant panda endocrinology from Western University of Health Sciences.

The cub, which is the first giant panda born in the U.S. in 2016, is the sixth for Lun Lun and 18-year-old male Yang Yang. Their first three offspring, male Mei Lan (born 2006), male Xi Lan (born 2008) and female Po (born 2010), now reside at the Chengdu Research Base. Their fourth and fifth offspring, 3-year-old females Mei Lun and Mei Huan, reside at Zoo Atlanta and are the only twin giant pandas in the U.S.

[carly]

Cub #2 is here!!!

http://www.zooatlanta.org/home/article_content/Second_giant_panda_cub_born_at_Zoo_Atlanta_2016_

[Kris G.]

Cub #2 is here!!!

http://www.zooatlanta.org/home/article_content/Second_giant_panda_cub_born_at_Zoo_Atlanta_2016_

I was just going to post this!       

[Kris G.]

From Zoo Atlanta

Panda Updates
Saturday, September 3
We are here in the giant panda nursery and are so excited to report on the birth of Lun Lun’s second set of twins!

We received the call that Lun Lun was having contractions early this morning and all rushed to the panda building. We didn’t have to wait long before she gave birth to a very loud, very healthy-looking cub. As usual, she is such a great panda mom that she picked the cub up right away and started taking care of it. Because we had seen two cubs on ultrasound, we anxiously awaited the birth of a second. As we all know, there are never any guarantees that giant pandas will give birth, even after we have seen cubs on ultrasound, because they can sometimes reabsorb a fetus. Lun Lun didn’t disappoint us, though, and 47 minutes later, Cub B was born! Talk about excitement!

Because  giant panda cubs are so altricial, (meaning that they are born in a very dependent and helpless manner requiring extensive care from their moms to survive),  and because we know that it is difficult for giant pandas  to provide this extensive maternal care for more than one cub at a time, often resulting in the death of one of the pair of babies, we were prepared to go into the twin-swapping mode that we utilized last time. We are so grateful that Lun Lun is such an amazing  panda and that we had such great experiences from the last time she had twins, and Mei Lun and Mei Huan taught us so much! 

The first cub that we were able to swap out was actually her firstborn (called Cub A for now). This is because Lun Lun set Cub A down on the floor of the den when she delivered Cub B. This can be a very dangerous time for the newborn cub, because the mom is so focused on taking care of the newest arrival that she can inadvertently roll on or sit on the firstborn.  We were able to get Cub A out of the den while she focused on Cub B. Cub A was rushed to our cub incubator and assessed to be very healthy, weighing in at 109.2 grams!  While we have a cub with us in the nursery, we take the opportunity to examine it for any obvious problems, weigh it, and we keep it very warm and moist (by keeping the humidity and temperatures in the incubator high), and it is snuggled under warm, soft blankets. This is to mimic the conditions of being held so snugly by Lun Lun. Cub A stayed nice and warm in the incubator, and we suspected that Cub A had nursed because he/she (too early to tell) seemed very content. Despite being so fragile, the cubs definitely let you know when they are ready for the next meal, and Cub A was no different, starting to get restless after about two hours in the incubator. We took this as a sign to try the swap, and when Lun Lun was in a position near the doorway, we removed Cub B and placed Cub A back with her for some mommy time!

Again, we have had experience  doing this from when we did this with Mei Lun and Mei Huan, and it certainly helps to have our very knowledgeable and experienced colleagues here from the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding who have  had years of experience doing this! So, we finally were able to meet Cub B, and boy, does he/she look great also. Very strong, and, of course, loud, and weighing in at 132 grams!  Hopefully, all will continue to go well here, and we know everyone out there is pulling for these babies! Anytime we can help to conserve endangered  species like this through our research and breeding efforts, as well as excellence in animal care, it is a huge success!
Dr. Hayley, Dr. Sam and Dr. Kate
Zoo Atlanta Veterinarians

http://youtu.be/bhEqgRxcmOA

[Kris G.]

Panda Updates
Sunday, September 4
We have officially entered Day 2, and the cubs are doing well. We breathe a little easier after the first 72 hours. Not to say that they are not still very fragile, but the first 72 hours are very critical for establishing good nursing with Lun Lun. At this point, we are looking for positive weight gain, normal feces and urination when cubs are stimulated to go, and that Lun Lun is feeling good, producing a good milk supply, and is starting to eat and drink well.

The addition of two brand new, state of the art incubators from the Dräger company has been so amazing! We are able to control the temperature and humidity to within one-tenth of a degree (%), which is very important for these babies. We are forever grateful for this donation!

The cub swaps are going very well also. Lun Lun has “been there and done that," and so have we, so we have established a great routine already and Lun Lun has been very accommodating. We are swapping the cubs every two hours to make sure that they each get enough mom time, but if one seems hungry before the two-hour mark and we have confirmed that the other cub has nursed (determined by very close observations done by our nursery keepers), we may swap a little sooner also. During the swap, each cub is weighed, checked to make sure it appears hydrated and pink, and checked to see if it has to go to the bathroom. Once the cub that just left Lun Lun is settled into the incubator, the cub that has been in the other incubator is returned to Lun Lun. This all happens pretty quickly, and while  the veterinarians and Chinese colleagues are working with the cubs, our dedicated keepers are making sure Lun Lun gets a chance to eat and drink. Pandas will not take care of their own needs very well during this neonatal stage, so we help her out and she has been doing very well. That's all for now -- take care and watch us on PandaCam!
Dr. Hayley

[Kris G.]

Growing!

http://youtu.be/KusRu-TZPsI

[Kris G.]

Expected but bittersweet news..from Zoo Atlanta site

Mei Lun's and Mei Huan's next adventure
Wednesday, September 28, 2016

Visit the 3-year-old twins before they embark on an important new milestone 

Mei Lun and Mei Huan, the first pair of surviving giant panda twins ever born in the U.S., will depart Atlanta later this year on their way to one of the most important milestones in the life of an American-born panda: a new chapter at their parents’ birthplace at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in China. While their travel date has not yet been set, the 3-year-old bears are currently expected to leave Atlanta in November 2016.

As is the case at all four U.S. zoos housing the species, the giant pandas at Zoo Atlanta are on loan from China. As part of that loan agreement, all of the offspring of adult pair Lun Lun and Yang Yang eventually travel to China when they are of age. Mei Lun and Mei Huan will be the fourth and fifth Zoo Atlanta-born pandas to return to the Chengdu Research Base, the Zoo’s partner in giant panda conservation.

“Mei Lun and Mei Huan have grown up at Zoo Atlanta. The Zoo family and friends around the world have embraced them, and we have been their stewards over three memorable years. In the continuing history of success for the giant panda program at Zoo Atlanta, it’s now their turn for new opportunities and new contributions to a powerful conservation collaboration,â€� said Raymond B. King, President and CEO. “We’re honored to have shared their formative years, and we’ll now watch with pride as they embark on their young adult years at the Chengdu Research Base, which is an international home base for some of the world’s top experts in caring for and protecting this species.â€� 

Mei Lun and Mei Huan, who have been living apart from their mother Lun Lun since February 2015, are ready for this next step in terms of both age and behavior. Giant pandas are a solitary species and are weaned from their mothers by the time they are around 18 months old.

Born July 15, 2013, Mei Lun and Mei Huan, whose names originate from a Chinese idiom meaning “something indescribably beautiful and magnificent,� are the fourth and fifth offspring of 19-year-old adults Lun Lun and Yang Yang. The pair’s first offspring, Mei Lan (born September 6, 2006), traveled to China in 2010. Their second and third cubs, Xi Lan (born August 30, 2008) and Po (born November 3, 2010), made the trip in 2014.

Giant pandas represent Zoo Atlanta’s most significant long-term financial investment in wildlife conservation. The Zoo has contributed over $10 million in sustained support for wild giant pandas. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) upgraded the giant panda’s status from “endangered� to “vulnerable� in September 2016, but the species remains heavily reliant on conservation programs. Fewer than 1,900 giant pandas are estimated to remain in the wild in China’s Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu provinces, where they face continuing threats from habitat fragmentation and habitat loss as a result of deforestation and other human activities. More than 1,200 of China’s remaining wild giant pandas live inside nature reserves, eight of which are supported by Zoo Atlanta.

Mei Lun’s and Mei Huan’s 3-week-old siblings, a second pair of twins born to Lun Lun on September 3, 2016, are achieving milestones of their own, but it will be quite some time before the tiny duo is ready to embark on the new adventure their older sisters will start this fall. The cubs now weigh over a pound each; for now, anticipated milestones for them include opening ears and opening eyes.

Visit Mei Lun and Mei Huan and their father, Yang Yang, in their habitats at The Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Giant Panda Conservation Center. Lun Lun and the newborns will remain behind-the-scenes until the new cubs are ready to make their debut in December 2016 or January 2017. Tune in to all of the milestones of the Zoo’s giant panda program on PandaCam hosted by Animal Planet L!VE on www.zooatlanta.org/pandacam.

Stay tuned for details on Mei Lun’s and Mei Huan’s departure date and farewell activities.

[Kris G.]

Sweet!

http://youtu.be/BBCgHL0Tg90

[AlisonL]

Thank you for posting those videos, Kris! Those little cubs are just way too cute!

[jeanne]

Thanks, Kris!  They are so adorable!!!!