Berlin Zoo Releases Adorable Photos of the First German Panda Twins

Photo: Berlin Zoo

In an update in October, Zoo and Tierpark Director Dr. Andreas Knieriem explained that the zoo staff has been “referring to them as ‘big one’ and ‘little one’, but thanks to Meng Meng’s nourishing milk the two siblings are now almost the same size and weight. They both weigh around two kilograms [4.4 pounds], and they are about 30 centimetres [11.8 inches] long respectively.”

Their healthy development thus far is viewed as a positive sign for the species as a whole. The World Wildlife Foundation (WWF) estimates the number of giant pandas in the wild to be 1,864. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List, the population of giant pandas is vulnerable to extinction, but is slowly increasing. Every single new cub is an important contribution to the conservation of the species.

Although the zoo is likely growing pretty attached to the panda twins, it must unfortunately send them back to China, their native land, four years after they have been weaned off Meng Meng. Meng Meng and Jiao Qing are themselves on a 15-year, $15-million loan from China, which began in 2017. Most of the money from the loan goes into a conservation program for the species.