By: Alvin Xu

A male panda named An An died at age 35 on Thursday. One year for pandas is about 3 years for humans. In human years, he lived for about 105 years. Pandas usually live from 14 to 20 years old. An An lived very long!

He arrived in Hong Kong in 1999. An An died because of health problems and was euthanized. According to the officials, he refused to eat solid food a short time before he died. Usually, pandas eat 30 pounds of bamboo per day. He struggled to do physical activities and would rather sit instead.

Giant pandas were listed as an endangered species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature in 1990. They reclassified the pandas as a “vulnerable” species in 2016. In 2021, there were 1,800 pandas in China and 500 in other countries.

Some people are concerned pandas’ habitats are constantly getting destroyed. Close to the Yangtze Basin in China, climate change has contributed to forests being lost.

The Chinese government worked hard to protect pandas’ habitats. They have made habitats for pandas all around the country. But the panda protections only reserve half of the ecosystems, the World Wildlife Fund estimated.

The news of An An’s death spread quickly. The chairman of Ocean Park, Paulo Pong, was very sad. He said in a news release that An An had “brought us fond memories with numerous heartwarming moments. His cleverness and playfulness will be dearly missed.”

Link: https://s3.amazonaws.com/appforest_uf/f1658688817973x865597259551132000/An%20An%2C%20World%E2%80%99s%20Oldest%20Giant%20Male%20Panda%20in%20Captivity%2C%20Dies%20at%2035%20-%20The%20New%20York%20Times.pdf