News Archive

Mei Xiang and her cub are still doing well! Keepers and veterinarians expect that Mei will begin leaving her den for longer periods of time soon. When she does leave the den for longer periods of time keepers and veterinarians hope to be able to perform another health check on the cub. In the...

Hellbenders, aquatic salamanders from the eastern United States, are surprisingly good at dealing with unpredictable weather. In a recent study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, researchers from the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute found that hellbenders can experience...

Mei Xiang and the cub continue to do well. Over the weekend, Mei left her den for a few minutes several times, once to get a drink of water. Keepers are starting to do some training with Mei Xiang in her den (as opposed to just feeding her) in an effort to facilitate our efforts to collect milk and...

The Smithsonian's National Zoological Park has been awarded a five-year accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums. The accreditation certifies that the National Zoo has met or exceeded the AZA's standards for animal care, veterinary programs, conservation, education and safety. In the...

The tiger cubs continue to thrive and are steadily gaining weight. Their coordination is improving as well, and they are exploring all five of the rooms that are available to them. The little girl came out into the runway yesterday afternoon and saw her mother Damai engage in a training session with...

The tiger cubs are one month old today. And Damai has moved them back into a den on the tiger cam!

Scientists at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute's Center for Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics confirmed that the giant panda cub born Aug. 23 at the National Zoo is female. A paternity analysis showed that the Zoo's panda Tian Tian (t-YEN t-YEN) is the cub's father. Scientists...

WHAT: The Smithsonian's National Zoo will announce the sex and paternity of the giant panda cub born at the National Zoo Aug. 23, and the second stillborn cub. WHO:Pierre Comizzoli, reproductive biologist Jesus Maldonado, research scientist Brandie Smith, senior curator of mammals and giant pandas...

This morning, Mei Xiang was very alert when the panda keepers walked into her den and looked eager for her morning drink. She drank 64 ounces of water right away. She did turn down all offers of food (a frozen bamboo shoot and sugar cane). She seems to be enjoying her "den service!"

Scientists at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute's Center for Conservation and Evolutionary Genetics confirmed that our giant panda cub is female! A paternity analysis showed that the Zoo's panda Tian Tian is the cub's father. Scientists also confirmed the second, stillborn cub Mei Xiang...

Last night at 6:15 p.m., Mei Xiang left her den. She climbed up the rockwork mountain in her adjoining exhibit, urinated, and returned to the den at 6:18. It's normal for bears not to eat, drink, urinate, or defecate much in the early days of raising a cub. This morning, she drank a little diluted...

Last night, Mei Xiang left her den at 10:37 p.m. to get a drink from the water in her enclosure for the first time since the cub was born. She drank for about two minutes before returning to the den and the cub. The panda team got a good look at the cub in the den and it looks great. You can see the...

The panda team offered Mei Xiang liquids and food this morning and evening. She was not interested in eating or drinking and remains very focused on her cub. She is an excellent mother. We get better visuals on the cub every day. It continues to look good, and today we got several good looks at its...

By Matt Neff, Animal Keeper at the Zoo’s Reptile Discovery Center When I started working at the Reptile Discovery Center late last year, I was lucky when I was asked if I’d be interested in helping with the Salamander Ambassador project. It rekindled the love for salamanders I’ve had since I was a...

This morning, the panda team offered Mei Xiang apple water, a bamboo smoothie, some bamboo, sugar cane and a pear. She was not interested in eating or drinking anything. Keepers are not worried about her lack of appetite: When she had Tai Shan, she did not eat anything until he was 16 days old, and...

Keepers went into Mei Xiang's den again this morning to offer her some food and drink. She drank some water sweetened with a little apple juice, which she has done for the past several days. Food still doesn't appeal to her much, which is normal for a bear that recently gave birth. She didn't touch...

The Smithsonian's National Zoo is mourning the death of its 23-year-old Przewalski's horse, a male named Rolles, who was humanely euthanized this morning. A final pathology report will provide more information. In July, keepers observed that Rolles had some nasal discharge. Zoo veterinarians...

In the early morning hours, Mei Xiang gently placed her cub on the floor of her den. Vigilant panda cam observers were watching at 3:37 a.m., and we're delighted to share the video! You'll see the tiny cub has a round belly which indicates to the panda team that it is nursing well. Also, the cub has...

Scientists have studied bird migration for centuries, but it remains one of nature's great mysteries.

In the early morning hours, giant panda Mei Xiang gently placed her cub on the floor of her den. Vigilant panda cam observers were watching at 3:37 a.m. We're delighted to share the video with you on the Zoo's YouTube page! You'll see the tiny cub has a round belly which indicates to the panda team...

This morning keepers entered Mei Xiang's den to offer her food and water. They came with some of her favorite treats—diluted apple juice, a sweet potato and a pear. She licked the sweet potato but didn't show much interest in it or the pear. Although Mei wasn't very hungry, she was thirsty and she...

This morning, the panda team attempted to get the cub for a second veterinary exam. Mei Xiang was more alert and more aware of the keepers' presence today, especially compared with Sunday when she seemed focused on the cub to the exclusion of everything else around her. As opposed to Sunday, today...

This morning, the panda team attempted to get the cub for a second veterinary exam. Mei Xiang was more alert and more aware of the keepers presence today, especially compared with Sunday when she seemed focused on the cub to the exclusion of everything else around her.

Our tiger cubs are 3 weeks old, and this morning they got their first veterinary exam—and passed with roaring colors. Veterinarians determined that the 2 cubs are a male and a female. The male cub weighs a little more than 8 pounds and the female weighs 7.5 pounds. During the exam the cubs received...

As kids around the area geared up for the first day of school today, the three-week-old Sumatran tiger cubs at the Smithsonian's National Zoo received their first veterinary exam—and they passed with roaring colors. Veterinarians determined that the two cubs are a male and a female. The male cub...