After eight years of waiting, will Hong Kong’s Ocean Park see its first locally conceived panda cub?
Enclosure shuts as Ying Ying and Le Le enter mating season with hopes that the pandas, a species known for sexual apathy, can produce offspring
Fans of Ocean Park’s panda pair Ying Ying and Le Le are expecting good news, as the park on Thursday announced the start of breeding season for two of its most recognisable mascots.
Now into their eighth year of trying to conceive – either naturally or through artificial means – the pair, if successful, would give the city its first ever locally born panda cub.
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On Thursday, Suzanne Gendron, the park’s executive director of zoological operations and conservation, said changes in the pandas’ behaviour and hormone levels suggested the start of mating season, which typically occurs between March and May.