WASHINGTON -- The National Zoo delivered sad news Sunday morning: The panda cub born to Mei Xiang a week ago has died.
Here are the details provided by the Zoo:
The Smithsonian’s National Zoo community mourns the loss of the giant panda cub born Sunday, Sept. 16. Panda keepers and volunteers heard a distress vocalization from the mother, Mei Xiang, at 9:17 a.m. and notified the veterinarian staff immediately. The panda cam was turned off and the staff were able to safely retrieve the cub for an evaluation at 10:22 a.m. Veterinarians immediately performed CPR and other life-saving measures but the cub did not respond.
Mei Xiang is under close observation.
Veterinarians’ first observations include:
- The cub was in good body condition and weighed just under 100g
- No outward sign of trauma
- No outward sign of infection
As The Associated Press reports, the panda cub's birth had been a surprise. Mei Xiang had five failed pregnancies before giving birth.
One of the many tweets posted since the news broke sums up the mood:
This is a developing story and will be updated.
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