Tian Tian the Giant Panda, Eating Bamboo

Two new research papers by Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute scientists and partners will help conservation biologists make strides in saving the fewer than 1,600 giant pandas left in the mountain forests of central China.

Mei Xiang (may-SHONG), the National Zoo’s female giant panda, gave birth to a cub Sunday, Sept. 16, at 10:46 p.m. National Zoo staff can hear the cub but have not yet seen it as Mei Xiang has built a substantial nest in her den. This is the second cub born to Mei Xiang and male panda Tian Tian (tee-YEN tee-YEN) as the result of artificial insemination.

To download photos, visit the Zoo’s Flickr page and for ultrasound video, visit the Zoo&rsq