Zoo Aquarium Madrid announced the birth of giant panda twins on September 6, 58 years after the historic first-ever live birth in captivity. They looked like tiny, screaming pink jelly beans that wriggled and squealed that is similar to all newborns.
The births of giant pandas carry great importance as their population is slowly dwindling. More so, their small size at birth have many scientists wondered how they grow up so big and why are they so small when they are newly born.
Captive Giant Panda Gave Birth to Twins
According to the zoo, a resident giant panda gave birth on Monday to twins. The first of the babies were born at 8:30 am, while the second one followed around midday. According to BBC Earth, half of the giant pandas give birth to twins although it is extremely rare for both cubs to survive after birth as they are almost always abandoned in the wild.
IFL Science reported that as soon as the baby pandas were born, their mother gathered them to clean their small, pink bodies. At birth, baby pandas are highly unrecognizable from their parents, but they eventually would look like giant pandas after four months.
Giant panda births carry a significant implication to their population. Breeding captive giant pandas can maintain genetic diversity among the species, while wild giant pandas get their groove back. But they are a little stubborn so they will need all the help they can get to get it on.
Zoos have tried various methods to help them breed, like using artificial insemination to impregnate female captive giant pandas. Presently, the animals are considered "vulnerable" species from being "endangered" on the IUCN Red List.
Why Are Giant Pandas Born So Small?
Giant pandas are so small at birth and look nothing like their parents. They are small, pink, blind, wrinkly, squealing, and entirely helpless creatures that are unlike their iconic look of black-and-white markings. Typically, they only weigh 100 grams (35 ounces), which is one of the smallest newborn mammals.
A 2019 study, titled "Comparative Skeletal Anatomy of Neonatal Ursids and the Extreme Altriciality of the Giant Panda" published in the Journal of Anatomy, explains why baby pandas are so tiny when born.
The study suggests that these newborn cubs are so tiny because their bones are mature compared to other mammals. Peishu Li, the study's co-author, said that newborn giant pandas are equivalent to a 28-week old human fetus, which means they are undercooked.
Laurie Thompson, assistant curator of giant pandas at the National Zoo, said that the bear's diet of eating bamboos might also influence their short gestation.
National Geographic reported that bamboo does not have many nutrients, so giant panda moms only focus their energy on developing high-fat milk that will help their cubs once they are born rather than growing a fetus inside of them. On the positive side, they grow rapidly as they suck their mother's milk up to 14 times a day.
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