Macao's twin panda cubs celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year

Panda cub "Jianjian" plays at a zoo in Macao, south China, Jan. 27, 2017. Seven-month-old twin panda cubs "Jianjian" and "Kangkang" and their keepers met the media here, on the eve of the Spring Festival. [Photo: Xinhua]

Two panda cubs in Macao welcomed public visitors on Friday, the first day they meet the public on a regular basis during the Spring Festival holidays.

The twin brothers were held by nurses in the Macao Giant Panda Pavilion behind the glass windows when visitors watched them with joy and ecstasy. The older one Jianjian started climbing a tree in the pavilion while the younger one Kangkang tried his best to sit on a tree stool.

One of the panda care team members said Jianjian now weighs about 13 kg and Kangkang more than 12 kg. Considering Kangkang was only 53 grams at birth, the younger brother grows more than 240 times since birth.

The two are still in the baby stage, but their behavior and motion response are all at normal level to meet the public regularly, he added.

The brothers and their parents will meet the public in Macao from Jan. 27, the eve of the Lunar New Year, to Feb. 6, the 10th day of the first month of the lunar year.

A female panda Xinxin gave birth to a pair of male twin cubs on June 26, 2016. The cubs were named Jianjian and Kangkang by the Macao SAR government from over 1,700 names recommended by Macao citizens. In Chinese Jian Kang means "being healthy."