With Xiang giving Friday night the puppy.
The National Zoo in Washington, DC, announced Friday a small bundle of good news amid the coronavirus pandemic.
With Xiang, the 22-year-old giant panda, the cub gave birth on Friday at 6:35 p.m., according to the National Zoo.
“A precious giant panda cub has arrived! We are happy to share that Mei Xiang was born at 6.35pm and cared for her newborn,” the zoo tweeted after the birth, which was streamed live. “Mom’s positive behaviors include caring for her puppy and cuddling close.”
With Xiang, March 22 was artificially contained with sperm collected from male panda Tian Tian and she exhibited behaviors consistent with pregnancy – sleeping and nesting – in late July.
The cub is the seventh for the panda, although only three have lived until adulthood. All have been fathered by Tian Tian.
“Giant pandas are an international symbol of endangered wildlife and hope, and with the birth of this precious puppy we are happy to provide the world with a need for pure pleasure,” said Steve Monfort, the John and Adrienne Mars director of the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, said in a statement. “Because Mei Xiang is an advanced parent, we knew the chances of her having a puppy were slim. However, we wanted to give her one more chance to contribute to the survival of her kind.”
“I am incredibly proud of our animal care and science teams, whose expertise in giant panda behavior was critical to this conservation success,” he added.
She was born mostly on August 22, 2015, to Bei Bei, named by American first lady Michelle Obama and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuang.
Bei Bei was transferred to a zoo in Chengdu, China last November.
One week ago, the zoo talked about the upcoming arrival and the attention it would attract to the animals.
“There is no denying that a giant panda is a charismatic animal. This is an enormous success story,” zoo spokeswoman Pamela Baker-Masson told ABC News. “We have millions of people watching our panda cam program all over the world every year.”
Mei Xiang was born in July 1998 at the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda.
Pandas, which are native to China, are classified as a “vulnerable” species in the wild, an upgrade from its former status as “endangered.”
ABC News’ Olivia Eubanks contributed to this report.
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