Hamilton Zoo awaits red panda cub's first public appearance

Hamilton Zoo is awaiting the first public appearance of a red panda cub born at the facility in December.

The red panda, whose gender is not yet known, is one of two cubs born at Hamilton Zoo on 9 December to first-time parents, mother Tayla (4) and father Chito (9). The second cub, which was the smaller of the two, failed to thrive after birth and consequently died.

Hamilton Zoo Director Stephen Standley said the red panda cubs are the first of the species to be born at the Zoo, and staff are keen to see the surviving cub emerge from its nest.

“Because we have never had red panda cubs born at Hamilton Zoo before, we were all very excited to learn of the cubs’ birth prior to Christmas,” said Mr Standley.

“Since then Tayla has been caring for her young babies in the privacy of their nest and we have been waiting patiently to see them venture outside. We were all saddened by news that one of the cubs had died, however the surviving cub is doing well and we looking forward to it making its first public appearance in a few weeks time.”

Last week the cub weighed in at 686 grams, up nearly 300 grams from its previous weigh-in on 17 January.

Mr Standley said red pandas are one of the few species with a global captive breeding programme, which Hamilton Zoo is part of. The programme has resulted in some animals being released into the wild.

“We are pleased to be able to contribute to the survival of the species with this breeding opportunity,” he said.

Prior to the cubs’ birth Chito and Tayla were the only red panda to reside at Hamilton Zoo, with Chito being based at the facility since August 2006 and Tayla since October 2010.

About red pandas:

Red pandas are found throughout the Himalayan ranges, in Western China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and India. They live in the same habitat as the giant panda, with both species having evolved to almost exclusively eat bamboo leaves and occasionally fruit, small animals, eggs and roots.

Classified as ‘vulnerable’ by the IUCN, the population of red pandas is thought to be less than 10,000 and decreasing. Deforestation and habitat fragmentation are the main threats to the survival of the species, and poaching for their beautiful fur is a major problem in China, where pelts have cultural significance.

The scientific name for red pandas is Ailurus fulgens which means ‘fire-coloured cat’ although the species are not cats. They are a striking reddish-brown colour with white facial markings and a striped tail which they use to balance when moving in the trees.