Giant pandas struggle to reproduce due to the female's short ovulation period. Mother bear Juxiao didn't have a problem as she gave birth to not one but three panda cubs in China late last month.
The mother delivered triplets at Ghuangzhou's Chimelong safari park in the early morning of July 29. The Chinese zoo billed the birth as the world's first known surviving trio, according to the Guardian. However, that distinction won't become official until the cubs reach six months old.
"It was a miracle for us and [the births] exceeded our expectation," said Dong Guixin, the safari park's general manager. "It's been 15 days. They have lived longer than any other triplets so far."
The zoo moved the cubs into an incubator following their mother's exhausting four-hour delivery. They were brought back to their mother to nurse after she regained her strength. The zoo also kept a round-the-clock team of feeders nearby to assist the panda family.
"The triplets can be described as a new wonder of the world," a statement from the safari park read. The panda cubs weighed between 2.9 and 4.4 ounces and could fit in the palm of a human hand.
The 12-year-old Juxiao mated with 17-year-old male Linlin. The zoo introduced the pandas last September.
"We made them neighbors so they could see each other and get familiarized with things such as smell," Dong said. "Juxiao also had to do more exercise to strengthen herself."
The youngest cub usually dies shortly after birth when the mother delivers more than one, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo. The first known case of giant panda triplets occurred in Chengdu, China in 1999. A 15-year-old mother gave birth following an artificial insemination, but only the two oldest cubs survived, according to the Guardian.
The Edinburgh Zoo also announced its panda Tian Tian is pregnant and may give birth later this month. The Scottish zoo artificially inseminated the panda earlier this year. New scientific tests gave a "strong indication" of pregnancy, but were "too new to be definitive," according to BBC News.
