TWO GIANT PANDA CUBS BORN IN FRANCE

Huan Huan, a Giant Panda has given birth to two cubs at the ZooParc de Beauval in France in the early hours of Monday.

The two pink, healthy and lively cubs weighed 149 grams and 129 grams respectively. Their mother is on loan from China with the hopes of reproducing. This is the second time that Huan Huan has given birth. The first time she had given birth to Yuan Meng, the first panda to be born in France.

Pandas are notoriously lazy when it comes to reproducing, both in captivity and in the wild. That’s why the Giant Panda was on the endangered species list for years and was only removed from the list recently.

The birth of the two cubs is such a huge thing for the species that two veterinarians were flown over from China to assist with the labour. The Giant Panda is native to China.

The BBC reports that experts say China managed to save its iconic animal through its long-term conservation efforts, including the expansion of habitats. China considers pandas a national treasure but has also loaned them to other countries as part of a diplomatic strategy.

Image credit: DW