Santa Barbara Zoo Loses Twin Red Panda Cubs

A California zoo's hopes for two newborn red pandas have ended in loss. The Santa Barbara Zoo said Monday the second of Ruby the red panda's cubs, born July 2 with male Raj, died over the weekend despite intensive, 24-hour care. "This is an incredibly sad and disappointing outcome," Santa Barbara Zoo officials said in a statement, per the Santa Barbara News Press. "While neonatal mortality can be high in red pandas, the loss of both cubs has been heartbreaking for everyone involved in their care." The first cub was found dead in the nest box on July 21, reports NBC News.

Staff had separated the surviving cub from Ruby on July 19 after noticing it wasn't nursing; it was treated in an incubator with tube and bottle feedings, antibiotics, and constant monitoring. The zoo says the cause of death is under investigation, but that a necropsy showed lung congestion and fluid around the heart. Roughly 40% of red panda cubs don't survive. The species is classified as endangered, with an estimated wild population of less than 2,500 and shrinking habitat in the eastern Himalayas.