Panda cubs meet public at SW China breeding base

Newborn giant panda cubs held by staff members make public appearance at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Sept. 28, 2022.(Xinhua/Xu Bingjie)

CHENGDU, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- Thirteen panda cubs, all born at the China Giant Panda Protection and Research Center this year, on Wednesday met the public at the breeding base in Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province.

The cubs were held by their keepers and posed in front of cameras.

They were laid on a table-tennis table-like platform which was decorated with ping-pong bats and balls made with wood and hemp ropes for the cubs to play with. The setting conveyed good wishes for the Chengdu 2022 World Team Table Tennis Championships Finals to be held between Sept. 30 and Oct. 9.

According to the center, the newborn cubs are among 15 giant panda cubs successfully bred at the panda base this year, including four pairs of twins. The weight of the heaviest newborn giant panda cub has reached 218.5 grams.

Visitors will be able to see the 2022 newborn panda cubs when traveling to the base during the upcoming National Day holiday in the first week of October.