Giant panda Ying Ying spent 19 years trying to become a mom, and her quest finally yielded results. She gave birth to twins at a theme park in Hong Kong, becoming the world’s oldest first-time panda mom in the process.
Ying Ying has been living at Ocean Park in Hong Kong since 2007 with her partner Le Le, but their attempts to produce offspring have been fruitless—until now. Ying Ying finally became a first-time mom to not one, but two baby pandas at the ripe age of 19, which is the equivalent of about 55 in human years.
Paulo Pong, chairman of Ocean Park Corporation, describes this birth as “a true rarity, especially considering Ying Ying is the oldest giant panda on record to have successfully given birth for the first time.” Ying Ying started showing signs of pregnancy, including decreased appetite, increased rest time, and changes in hormonal levels, back in July but her pregnancy was only made official after she gave birth.
After five hours of labor, Ying Ying gave birth to a female cub weighing 122 grams (4.3 ounces) and a male cub at 112 grams (3.95 oz.). According to Ocean Park’s statement, the babies are currently very fragile and need time to stabilize and they remain under 24-hour intensive care.
