![]() ![]() The zoo reopened on a limited basis July 24 with visitors needing timed passes to keep the crowds down. "It lifts the spirits of my team and the whole world."įor now, the Panda-cam is still the only way for panda-maniacs to get their fix. ![]() "Something like this is kind of a miracle for us," National Zoo Director Steve Monfort said at the time. When the baby was actually born, traffic went so high that viewers were getting bumped off the livestream, forcing zoo officials to boost the bandwidth on the camera feed. Response to the news that the mother, Mei Xiang, was pregnant caused traffic on the zoo's ever-popular Panda-cam to spike by 1,200%, zoo officials said. The birth was hailed as a desperately needed bit of happy news amid a global COVID-19 pandemic that forced the zoo to shut down for months. Famously described by zoo staffers as the size of a stick of butter at birth, the baby has grown in six weeks to 14 inches long and weighs 3.6 pounds. Photos and videos released by the zoo show the baby, which was born pink, blind and nearly hairless, starting to take on the familiar black-and-white coloring. The genetic test was necessary because male and female baby pandas appear physically identical to exterior examination. 21, received a genetic test via cheek swab that confirmed his gender. The gender reveal was made in a video released Monday by the zoo, where panda-keepers unveiled a canvas smeared with blue markings that was "painted" by the baby's father, Tian Tian.
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