HELP US NAME OUR BABY RED PANDA
TORONTO, ON, Saturday, September 19, 2020: In the late afternoon of Tuesday, July 14, 2020 your Toronto Zoo welcomed endangered female red panda cub, affectionately known as #BabyRed, and we need YOUR help to give her a name! Beginning Saturday, September 19, 2020 – in celebration of International Red Panda Day - through Tuesday, September 29, 2020 at 11:59 pm vote at torontozoo.com for your favourite from the selected names below:
The name with the most votes will be announced on Friday, October 2, 2020 – so stay tuned! Can’t get enough #BabyRed? Be sure to follow us on social today in celebration of Red Panda Day for new video content, updates and don’t forget to tune into @TheTorontoZoo Facebook Live at 1:00 pm to virtually meet our red panda cub.
For Footage Of A Day In The Life Of A Red Panda Keeper,
Our Wildlife Care Keepers continue to supplement feed #BabyRed, but here’s a peek at what goes on when she’s spending the rest of her time in the nest box with mom ‘Ila’.
For Nest Box Footage Of Our Baby Red Panda,
In the late afternoon of Tuesday, July 14, 2020, Ila, your Toronto Zoo’s two-year-old female red panda (Ailurus fulgens refulgens), gave birth to two cubs. This is the first red panda pregnancy at the Zoo since 1996, and this is the first offspring for mother Ila with father Suva, a three-year-old male. Ila, from Woodland Park Zoo, and her mate Suva, from Assiniboine Park Zoo, are both relatively new Toronto Zoo residents, and were paired up at the recommendation of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP), a cooperative breeding program among accredited zoos.
The Zoo was saddened to announce on July 22, 2020 that one of the red panda cubs had passed away. The first five weeks for red panda cubs is very critical to the cubs’ survival it was suspected that Ila was not producing enough milk to feed both cubs, which is why the Zoo began supplemental feedings. Our team continues feeding our female red panda cub while still keeping her with Ila to allow them to continue bonding. While the first few months are critical to the cub’s survival, we are cautiously optimistic based on her progression that she will continue to grow healthy and strong.
In April 2015, the conservation status of red pandas was elevated to Endangered by the International Union for Conservation and Nature (IUCN). Red pandas are elusive and challenging to study in the wild – their population has been estimated by experts as anywhere between 2,500 and 10,000 individuals, but all agree that the species is declining – by as much as 50% in the past 20 years. Illegal hunting and habitat loss are their primary threats. The Toronto Zoo is part of the AZA Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP) and continues to support field conservation efforts for the species through the Red Panda Network. To find out how you can support the endangered red pandas and other wildlife conservation work at your Toronto Zoo, please CLICK HERE.
Follow us on social media for updates on #BabyRed!
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Media Contact Information:
Katie Gray
Manager of Strategic Communications
(416) 938-5283
[email protected]
In the late afternoon of Tuesday, July 14, 2020, Ila, your Toronto Zoo’s two-year-old female red panda (Ailurus fulgens refulgens), gave birth to two cubs. This is the first red panda pregnancy at the Zoo since 1996, and this is the first offspring for mother Ila with father Suva, a three-year-old male. Ila, from Woodland Park Zoo, and her mate Suva, from Assiniboine Park Zoo, are both relatively new Toronto Zoo residents, and were paired up at the recommendation of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA) Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP), a cooperative breeding program among accredited zoos.
The Zoo was saddened to announce on July 22, 2020 that one of the red panda cubs had passed away. The first five weeks for red panda cubs is very critical to the cubs’ survival it was suspected that Ila was not producing enough milk to feed both cubs, which is why the Zoo began supplemental feedings. Our team continues feeding our female red panda cub while still keeping her with Ila to allow them to continue bonding. While the first few months are critical to the cub’s survival, we are cautiously optimistic based on her progression that she will continue to grow healthy and strong.
In April 2015, the conservation status of red pandas was elevated to Endangered by the International Union for Conservation and Nature (IUCN). Red pandas are elusive and challenging to study in the wild – their population has been estimated by experts as anywhere between 2,500 and 10,000 individuals, but all agree that the species is declining – by as much as 50% in the past 20 years. Illegal hunting and habitat loss are their primary threats. The Toronto Zoo is part of the AZA Red Panda Species Survival Plan (SSP) and continues to support field conservation efforts for the species through the Red Panda Network. To find out how you can support the endangered red pandas and other wildlife conservation work at your Toronto Zoo, please CLICK HERE.
Follow us on social media for updates on #BabyRed!
- 30 -
Media Contact Information:
Katie Gray
Manager of Strategic Communications
(416) 938-5283
[email protected]