The first pair of panda twins to be born in America in 26 years arrived in Atlanta on Monday, according to CNN. The bears were born to mother Lun Lun, a 15-year-old giant panda at Zoo Atlanta, with the first bear arriving at 6:21 p.m. and the second at 6:23 p.m.
The zoo didn't know the gender of the cubs yet.
Lun Lun has given birth to two other bears at Zoo Atlanta, but this was her first pair of twins, the result of artificial insemination. Their father is 15-year-old Yang Yang, another panda that resides at Zoo Atlanta.
"We're thrilled to welcome Lun Lun's and Yang Yang's twins," Raymond B. King, the president and CEO of Zoo Atlanta, said in a statement. "This is a success we share with all of our fellow zoological organizations working to understand and protect this iconic species, and we share our joy with our local community and with our colleagues in China."
The twins currently look like tiny pink rodents, though within a week or two, they will begin growing tiny patches of black hair.
They were separated after their birth, with one twin staying with Lun Lun and the other being cared for by the nursery at the zoo.
"Twins are an entirely new scenario for Lun Lun, Zoo Atlanta and our animal care teams, who will no doubt be extremely busy over the next few months," King said.
Baby panda cubs typically weigh only three to five ounces at birth, and twin panda cubs usually weigh less, giving them a high risk of mortality, according to the Smithsonian National Zoological Park.
Twin cubs aren't unusual for pandas in the wild, though the mother usually only cares for one of them. That's why they were separated after their birth, though the zoo is considering rotating them between the nursery and Lun Lun's care over the next few months so they both have time with their mother, Zoo Atlanta said in a statement.
The bear cubs will likely both be out in the zoo where the public can visit them in the late fall, according to Zoo Atlanta. Their father will remain on display.
There are currently less than 2,000 giant pandas on the planet, according to the Smithsonian. Of those remaining, 300 are in zoos and breeding centers, with the majority of those in China. Approximately 1,600 remain in the wild in the mountain forests of central China, their natural habitat.
Video of the baby pandas.
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