Indonesian zoo publishes photos of first panda cub born in the country

A zoo on the island of Java released photos of the first giant panda cub born locally in Indonesia and said the male cub showed signs of being in good health.

The mother, Hu Chun, 15, gave birth to Satrio Wiratama, nicknamed Rio, on November 27 at the Cisarua Zoo facility, West Java province.

The name symbolizes hope, resilience and shared commitment of Indonesia and China in protecting endangered species, Taman Safari Indonesia said in a statement on Sunday.

“This birth is the result of a long-term international cooperation program that has been underway for a decade, since the arrival of giant pandas Hu Chun and Cai Tao to Indonesia in 2017 as part of a 10-year conservation partnership with China,” the statement said.

Rio is in stable condition and under 24-hour monitoring by the zoo team, showing healthy early signs such as strong vocalization, effective lactation, and steady weight gain. Over the next one to two months, it is expected to develop better temperature control, grow fur, open its eyes and begin making early motor movements, the zoo said.

“At this early stage, the baby panda is not yet accessible to the public. Taman Safari Indonesia will continue to prioritize the health and well-being of the mother and her baby, and invites the public to join in praying for the development of the baby panda so that it remains healthy and safe in the early stages of its life,” he said.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced the name of the baby panda on Thursday and showed its photo when he met with Wang Huning, a senior political adviser and prominent Chinese ideologue.

Cai Tao and Hu Chun, a pair of giant pandas who arrived in Indonesia in 2017, live in a “palace-like” house that was built for them at the Taman Safari Zoo, located about 43 miles from Jakarta.

Pandas are widely considered China’s unofficial national mascot, and its giant panda loan program with zoos abroad has long been seen as a tool of Beijing’s soft power diplomacy, also known as “panda diplomacy.”

giant pandas They have difficulty reproducing and births are especially welcome. There are fewer than 1,900 giant pandas in their only wild habitats in the Chinese provinces of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu.

These pandas live mainly in the mountain forests of southwestern China. Concern about declining panda populations peaked during the early years, triggering conservation efforts that eventually led to its reclassification as a “vulnerable” rather than “endangered” species just a few years ago.

“The living conditions of China’s rare and endangered species have seen notable improvements amid the country’s active efforts for biodiversity protection and ecological restoration,” China’s State Council Information Office said in 2021, when the country announced that giant pandas were no longer endangered, with more than 1,800 living in the wild.

Saving giant pandas from the brink of extinction has been a priority for scientists, especially in recent years, and learning how to keep baby pandas alive has been a big part of their quest to do so successfully. As 60 minutes As reported in 2020, raising a baby panda takes a lot of work.

Because pandas’ gestation periods are short, babies are born small, weighing only a few ounces. Newborns are pink, hairless, and cannot open their eyes for weeks.