According to the zoo, Mei Xiang was artificially inseminated twice on March 30 after natural breeding efforts with Tian Tian failed.

A team of zoo scientists and veterinarians, including Tang Chunxiang, assistant director and chief veterinarian of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda at Wolong, performed the artificial insemination.

During the first procedure she was artificially inseminated with a combination of fresh and frozen semen collected from Tian Tian. The frozen semen was from 2003.

The second procedure was performed with frozen semen collected from Tian Tian in 2003 and frozen semen collected from Gao Gao in 2003.

"We had never artificially inseminated Mei Xiang with semen from two males before this past breeding season," said Pierre Comizzoli, reproductive biologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute.

"If Gao Gao had been the father of one or both cubs, that would have been very interesting because we would have known that the second artificial insemination was the one that was successful," he said.

DC resident Chris Cantelmi was visiting the giant pandas at the National Zoo on Thursday morning with his 5-year-old daughter and 2-year-old son. He was excited to learn that Tian Tian was the father of the cub. "Dad was here?" he said, but he seemed a bit disappointed that the indoor giant panda pavilion had been closed since Aug 2 and will stay closed to provide quiet for Mei Xiang and her cub.

Mei Xiang, whom people can now watch online via a round-the-clock webcam, has so far given birth to four cubs at the National Zoo. The first one, Tai Shan, born in 2005, was a sensation, but Tai Shan returned to China in 2010 for reproductive programs. According to the arrangement with Beijing, newborn cubs from parents on loan from Beijing belong to China.

chenweihua@chinadailyusa.com

(China Daily USA 09/06/2013 page1)