The Knoxville Zoo has a pair of brand new residents. Zoo officials confirm two baby red pandas were born earlier in the week.The mother is Kumari and the father is Chewbacca. The cubs are on exhibit with their mother, but the zoo staff is keeping a close eye on them.
Since 1977, when Knoxville's first pair of red pandas, Bernice and Buster arrived, the zoo has had 93 births, more than any other North American zoo.
The Knoxville Zoo is also home to the oldest red panda in captivity, Flo, age 18.
There is also a set of twin baby red pandas at the Edmonton Valley Zoo. Tai and Pip, who were born May 26 to Lala, made their first public appearance on Thursday.
The twins were removed shortly after birth when the mother began aggressively holding and grooming one of the babies endangering its life. To ensure their survival, the babies will be hand raised by Sandy Heiliker, the Valley Zoo’s Animal Health Technologist.
It's estimated there are around 2,000 to 5,000 red pandas in the wild, although it's not known how the recent earthquake in Chengdu, China, may have affected this count.
