The San Diego Zoo announced July 29 that their giant panda Bai Yun is pregnant for the fifth time!

Bai Yun is projected to give birth just a few weeks into August; however she and her cub will not be available for viewing until months after the birth.

San Diego Zoo enthusiasts are probably most excited about the news that Bai Yun may be carrying twins.

Zoo researchers reported that two heartbeats could be heard through the ultrasound done yesterday. Though they say that the disappointing news is that it is more than probable that only one cub will be born when all is said a done as Bai Yun has been pregnant with twins in several of her pregnancies but has never delivered more than one cub.

The intricacies of the birthing process of pandas are still mostly a mystery to the Zoo veterinarians who know little beyond the approximate gestation period of pandas and that a fetus carried to term should weigh about 4 ounces. However, they do suspect, based on Bai Yun’s past births that the odds are against the pregnant giant panda delivering both cubs. 

The San Diego Zoo reports that the father is Gao Gao, another Giant Panda donated by China in a scientific exchange. Gao Gao is also the father of Bai Yun’s other cubs, two of which are still at the San Diego Zoo while their other two offspring are in the breeding program in China.

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