An An, the oldest male giant panda in human care and died at the age of 35 years on Thursday (July 21), as per the Hong Kong amusement park where he resided. Over the previous few weeks, his health had shown consistent signs of deterioration and he stopped eating. His age is equivalent to 105 years in human years. An An has been at Ocean Park, a marine and wildlife center since 1999. The center in a statement said, “Ocean Park is deeply saddened to announce the loss of An An,” Reuters said.
The park further stated that An An developed himself as vital member of the family. Additionally, he developed close friendships with both tourists and locals.
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An An was kept away from visitors due to his health deteriorating and he began experiencing high blood pressure, a disease typical of senior pandas.
The Chinese government gave the world’s giant panda, Jia Jia, who passed away in 2016 at the age of 38, and An An as gifts. Both the panda’s care allowed Ocean Park to establish itself as a key hub for panda conservation as per the park, which expressed its gratitude for the chance it got.
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Currently, the two enormous pandas, Ying Ying and Le Le are not part of the park’s collection of animals along with others such as penguins, dolphins, and walruses.
China in 2007 granted both Le Le (male) and Ying Ying (female). The park has been waiting for the couple to give birth, but thus far they haven’t.
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Giant pandas, a species of bear, generally survive up to 30 years in captivity.
(With inputs from agencies)
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