The Edmonton Valley Zoo’s red panda family has grown by two! Along with proud parents Kiki and Tango, we are excited to announce the birth of two red panda cubs on Sunday, July 7th! Kiki is an incredibly devoted and attentive first-time mom, and the 3-week-old cubs are nursing well, steadily growing, and hitting all the expected developmental milestones for this stage.Â
Red pandas face many pre- and post-partum challenges. This is a particularly critical time for Kiki and her cubs, so during this important developmental stage they are not visible to the public. Their eyes are just opening, and they are still learning how to walk in the safety of their nest box. However, we will be sharing photos and videos from the nest box on our social media accounts as the cubs grow and develop.
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ABOUT RED PANDA CUBS
Credit: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Academy
- When cubs are born, they weigh about a small stick of butter or a roll of pennies ~4 oz/120g. They have pink skin covered with wooly grey hair. At around 2 weeks reddish guard hairs start to appear. at around 1 month full colouration can be seen.
- At around 50 days they may start to actively explore the den, groom, and play.
- At around 90 days they may begin venturing farther from the nest.
- At around 8 months the cubs are independent (in time for breeding season in the wild). They will remain close with mom until they are independent.
- For the first 7-10 days the cubs’ only activity is nursing. A nursing bout lasts ~17 minutes and hungry cubs get mom’s attention with high-pitched whistles!
- Cubs usually nurse until they are between 13-22 weeks old after which they begin chewing on bamboo twigs mom brings into the den. Around 4 months start to regularly eat solid food.
- When the cubs start to explore their environment they will begin engaging in exploration and play such as lunging, wrestling, and biting which is natural behaviour.
Meet the Parents:
Kiki and Tango
Kiki
BORN: June 7, 2019
WHERE: Milwaukee County Zoo
ABOUT:
Kiki came to the Edmonton Valley Zoo in November of 2021 as part of the red panda SSP program. Her favourite foods are grapes, pears, and apples. Kiki’s zookeepers say that she is always showing off her impressive climbing skills, and will often choose to take unconventional routes to get to the different areas of her exhibit faster.
FUN FACT: The birth of these cubs means we have THREE generations of red pandas under our roof! They join dad Tango and Grandpa Kalden as part of our red panda family. This is the first set of red panda cubs born here at the Edmonton Valley Zoo since July 2017 when we welcomed Paprika and Pepper.
tango
BORN: July 30, 2015
WHERE:Â
ABOUT:
Coming Soon!