WASHINGTON — Fans of a giant panda at Washington’s National Zoo buzzed with excitement on social media sites after the panda gave birth Friday to her third cub.
The zoo said Mei Xiang gave birth at 5:32 p.m. Friday, two hours after her water broke. Zoo officials said the panda team heard the cub vocalize and that the mother picked up the cub immediately and began cradling and caring for it.
“WE HAVE A CUB!! Born at 5:32 p.m. this evening,” tweeted the Smithsonian-run zoo.
Zoo keepers and veterinarians will examine the cub within the next 48 hours. The panda team will perform health checks every few days. Its gender was not immediately known.
Zookeepers had not been certain that Mei Xiang was pregnant because she refused to cooperate with attempts to perform an ultrasound.
Mei Xiang had previously given birth to two cubs. Tai Shan was born in 2005, and a week-old cub died last September.
