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| Death Shows Fragility of Pandas’ Lives | |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| The giant panda cub that died Sunday morning had uneven coloring and hardness in her liver, officials at the National Zoo in Washington said Monday. | The giant panda cub that died Sunday morning had uneven coloring and hardness in her liver, officials at the National Zoo in Washington said Monday. |
| That information came from a preliminary necropsy, but it was not a conclusive cause of the sudden death of the 6-day-old female cub, who was heard grunting just 17 minutes before she was found lifeless, zoo officials said. Final results of a full necropsy will not be available for another two weeks. | That information came from a preliminary necropsy, but it was not a conclusive cause of the sudden death of the 6-day-old female cub, who was heard grunting just 17 minutes before she was found lifeless, zoo officials said. Final results of a full necropsy will not be available for another two weeks. |
| The cub’s sudden death came as a dispiriting shock to the zoo, which has invested millions of dollars in efforts to propagate the beloved but endangered species, and it opened a window into the fraught world of captive breeding. | The cub’s sudden death came as a dispiriting shock to the zoo, which has invested millions of dollars in efforts to propagate the beloved but endangered species, and it opened a window into the fraught world of captive breeding. |
| “Conservation is a life and death business,” said Pamela Baker-Masson, associate director of communications for the zoo. “This one was particularly devastating for us.” | “Conservation is a life and death business,” said Pamela Baker-Masson, associate director of communications for the zoo. “This one was particularly devastating for us.” |
| After her first seemingly healthy days, the cub was discovered on the floor in the pandas’ den early Sunday morning after her mother, Mei Xiang, let out honks of distress. | After her first seemingly healthy days, the cub was discovered on the floor in the pandas’ den early Sunday morning after her mother, Mei Xiang, let out honks of distress. |
| Zoo patrons had expressed concern that the cub’s 217-pound mother had crushed the baby, who weighed just four ounces — as little as a stick of butter — in her arms. But the necropsy found no outward signs of trauma or infection, the zoo’s chief veterinarian, Dr. Suzan Murray, said at a news conference. | Zoo patrons had expressed concern that the cub’s 217-pound mother had crushed the baby, who weighed just four ounces — as little as a stick of butter — in her arms. But the necropsy found no outward signs of trauma or infection, the zoo’s chief veterinarian, Dr. Suzan Murray, said at a news conference. |
| The cub’s liver, which was roughly the size of a lima bean, was hard to the touch in several spots, Dr. Murray said. Also worrisome, she said, were small amounts of liquid in the panda’s abdomen. The liquid itself was not thought to be enough to cause death, Dr. Murray said, but could be a sign of liver malfunction. | The cub’s liver, which was roughly the size of a lima bean, was hard to the touch in several spots, Dr. Murray said. Also worrisome, she said, were small amounts of liquid in the panda’s abdomen. The liquid itself was not thought to be enough to cause death, Dr. Murray said, but could be a sign of liver malfunction. |
| One of the challenges in breeding pandas, as well as many other critically endangered species, is that little is known about either their behavior or specific biology in the wild. Consequently zoos have very few markers to refer to in establishing what, say, a normal liver of a one-week-old panda might look like. | One of the challenges in breeding pandas, as well as many other critically endangered species, is that little is known about either their behavior or specific biology in the wild. Consequently zoos have very few markers to refer to in establishing what, say, a normal liver of a one-week-old panda might look like. |
| What is known is that panda cubs do not have a high rate of survival in either zoos or the wild. Mei Xiang has had only one cub in more than a decade of trying to conceive at the zoo. The female panda in residence at the zoo in the 1980s, Ling-Ling, had five cubs, all of which died; three were stillborn and two died of pneumonia. | What is known is that panda cubs do not have a high rate of survival in either zoos or the wild. Mei Xiang has had only one cub in more than a decade of trying to conceive at the zoo. The female panda in residence at the zoo in the 1980s, Ling-Ling, had five cubs, all of which died; three were stillborn and two died of pneumonia. |
| Pandas born in captivity have not been successfully reintroduced to supplement the fewer than 1,600 pandas remaining in the wild. However, the 300 or so captive animals, most held in a panda reserve outside of Chengdu, China, do play a critical role in research and act as an insurance genetic bank for the wild population. | Pandas born in captivity have not been successfully reintroduced to supplement the fewer than 1,600 pandas remaining in the wild. However, the 300 or so captive animals, most held in a panda reserve outside of Chengdu, China, do play a critical role in research and act as an insurance genetic bank for the wild population. |
| Another important function of a baby panda at a zoo is to act as a fund-raiser. A new panda cub would “inspire and grab the attention of millions and billions, and therefore we can explain the plight of their cousins to a broader audience,” said Sybille Klenzendorf, managing director of species conservation for World Wildlife Fund. “We are sad we lost a cub and sad we lost an ambassador.” | Another important function of a baby panda at a zoo is to act as a fund-raiser. A new panda cub would “inspire and grab the attention of millions and billions, and therefore we can explain the plight of their cousins to a broader audience,” said Sybille Klenzendorf, managing director of species conservation for World Wildlife Fund. “We are sad we lost a cub and sad we lost an ambassador.” |
| Zoo officials said it was impossible to guess the mental state of Mei Xiang after the death of her baby. The mother panda did sleep normally Sunday night and was roaming her cage Monday. She also nibbled at biscuits and bamboo, they reported. | Zoo officials said it was impossible to guess the mental state of Mei Xiang after the death of her baby. The mother panda did sleep normally Sunday night and was roaming her cage Monday. She also nibbled at biscuits and bamboo, they reported. |
| And she was seen still cradling her pear-shaped rubber toy — much as she had done before the birth and during pseudopregnancies. | And she was seen still cradling her pear-shaped rubber toy — much as she had done before the birth and during pseudopregnancies. |