Washington D.C’s National Zoo has not just welcomed one, but two panda cubs.
The newest additions to the zoo were born on Saturday at 5:34pm local time, making 17-year-old Giant Panda Mei Xang now a mother to four.
Mei gave birth to Tai Shan in 2005 and Bao Bao – who celebrates her birthday today – in 2013.
Smithsonian’s National Zoo confirmed the births on Sunday and are hand rearing the twins, swapping them equally between an incubator and being nursed by Mei.
“The primary goal for the panda team is for both cubs to have the benefit of nursing and spending time with their mother,” wrote the Smithsonian’s National Zoo on Facebook.
“It’s too early to guess about when the cubs will be placed together.”
The birth of the twins has been a splendid surprise for the zoo and their employees who were not sure whether Mei was pregnant.
The Giant Panda has had six pseudopregnancies, making the arrival of these twins all the more special.
