Miraculous! Red panda gives birth to healthy quadruplets in SW China

A red panda gave birth to rare quadruplets at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Chengdu, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan province, on June 19. Both the mother and the cubs are reported to be in good health.

A screenshot of a video shows a red panda and its quadruplets at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Chengdu, capital of southwest China’s Sichuan province. (Photo courtesy of the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding)

Each of the four cubs weighed about 0.1 kilograms, which is within the normal newborn range. They can now breastfeed by themselves.

It’s the second time this has happened in the base since 1996. Compared with 25 years ago, the application of more advanced breeding techniques ensured that this time, the mother and the cubs all survived, which excited all the keepers and experts.

The success demonstrates that the base has made great strides in scientific research, protection and breeding of red pandas. There are 163 red pandas at the base, the world’s largest captive population of the species.

The red panda was listed as an endangered species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List in 2015.