![Longest-living male giant panda in captivity An An dies at 35](https://www.americanmarconiwirelessnews.com/media/shared/articles/93/c1/44/Longest-living-male-giant--panda--i-816231.jpg)
-
Macron, ex-PM remember bloody liberation of French port
-
Noel Gallagher's 'Brit Pop' guitars go under hammer
-
US clears way for hearing aid feature in new Apple AirPods Pro
-
Hamilton not disappointed by Newey move to Aston Martin
-
Final report clears WADA in Chinese swimmers case, adds rules need strengthening
-
US calls for Africa to get two permanent UN Security Council seats
-
Burrow's Bengals aim to bounce back against Chiefs
-
Ingebrigtsen says getting stronger, bullish over world records
-
Putin warns West risks 'war' if it backs Ukraine long-range strikes
-
Peru mourns divisive former strongman Fujimori
-
Vaughan's son takes 11 wickets as Somerset revive title bid by beating champions Surrey
-
Long-awaited case on Man City charges to start on Monday: report
-
PSG refuse League order to pay Mbappe disputed €55 million
-
Harris, Trump target swing states after fierce debate
-
Ten Hag hits back at Ronaldo criticism over Man Utd ambition
-
Oscar hopefuls to bookend US French film festival
-
UN chief calls for 'courage' ahead of Summit of the Future
-
French rugby federation blames 'poorly managed' supervision for youth player drowning
-
Movie producer Harvey Weinstein indicted on new charges: US media
-
Ex-Scotland captain Hogg to miss Montpellier match after bail release
-
'Historic': Bad weather slashes wine harvest in France's Jura
-
ECB rate cut boosts European stocks, euro
-
Piastri not 'pulling over' for Norris at every race
-
'Energised' Tebogo looking to close season with Diamond League bang
-
Millions in SE Asia battle floods, death toll passes 250
-
Fiat 500 electric production pauses for one month
-
London Fashion Week opens with Charli XCX party and second-hand runways
-
ECB cuts rates again, Lagarde backs EU reform call
-
Storm Francine downgraded but still drenching US south
-
Everton say 'work to be done' on Textor takeover
-
Shelling kills 3 Red Cross workers in E.Ukraine
-
Shelling kills 3 Red Cross workers killed in E.Ukraine
-
Iran president makes 'historic' visit to Iraqi Kurdistan
-
Brigitte Macron awarded damages over false trans claim
-
ECB rate cut boosts Europeans stocks, euro
-
Deadly Israeli strike on Gaza school draws global condemnation
-
Russia recaptures part of Kursk region
-
Bike-loving Dutch grapple with 'fatbike' phenomena
-
Ahead of Champions League warm-up, PSG are soaring and Brest slumping
-
ECB cuts rates again as inflation slows
-
Denmark's von Trier to direct a new film
-
Arteta agrees new Arsenal deal
-
Jon Bon Jovi helps woman standing on edge of US bridge
-
SpaceX makes history with first spacewalks by private citizens
-
England's Livingstone 'feels like a kid again' after injury setbacks
-
Brazil urges EU to suspend 'punitive' anti-deforestation law
-
Myanmar residents flee deadly floods in boats and on makeshift rafts
-
Power struggle and chaotic player trading: What's going at Chelsea?
-
Blinken seeks common cause in Poland after Ukraine jitters
-
Stocks rally on cooler US inflation, before ECB rate call
RBGPF | 4.7% | 59.81 | $ | |
CMSC | -0.16% | 25.2 | $ | |
BCC | 3.63% | 126.69 | $ | |
AZN | -2.17% | 78.82 | $ | |
GSK | -1.58% | 43.09 | $ | |
RYCEF | 2.33% | 6.45 | $ | |
SCS | 0.52% | 13.41 | $ | |
BTI | -0.35% | 38.985 | $ | |
RELX | 1.58% | 47.905 | $ | |
NGG | -0.25% | 69.15 | $ | |
RIO | 1.02% | 61.84 | $ | |
JRI | -0.04% | 13.175 | $ | |
CMSD | 0.17% | 25.174 | $ | |
BCE | 0.19% | 35.258 | $ | |
VOD | 0% | 10.04 | $ | |
BP | 0.93% | 31.585 | $ |
![Longest-living male giant panda in captivity An An dies at 35](https://www.americanmarconiwirelessnews.com/media/shared/articles/93/c1/44/Longest-living-male-giant--panda--i-816231.jpg)
Longest-living male giant panda in captivity An An dies at 35
The world's longest-living male giant panda under human care, An An, has died at the age of 35, the Hong Kong zoo where he spent most of his life said Thursday.
An An's health had deteriorated in recent weeks, with a severe decrease in physical activity and appetite, and he was euthanised by veterinarians early Thursday morning, a statement from the amusement park and zoo Ocean Park said.
The park said he was equivalent to 105 in human years, and that "the difficult decision" to put him down had been made for welfare reasons in consultation with Chinese experts.
Born in the wild of mainland China's Sichuan province, An An was one of a panda pair gifted to Hong Kong by Beijing to celebrate the second anniversary of the city's handover from Britain in 1999.
He and his mate Jia Jia spent the rest of their lives in Ocean Park.
They were a venerable pair -- Jia Jia held the Guinness World Records for the oldest living panda and oldest panda ever in captivity when she died at the age of 38 in 2016.
A panda's average life span in the wild is 14-20 years, according to the World Wildlife Fund.
After Jia Jia's death, her surviving mate led a rather solitary life -- in 2021, he celebrated his 35th birthday alone with a Haagen-Dazs fruit and bamboo ice cake, surrounded by a number of handmade birthday cards from the Park's staff.
- Political animals -
Pandas are a top choice of diplomatic gift from Beijing, and An An and Jia Jia enjoyed a fair degree of political clout for zoo-dwellers.
When they first arrived in the city, then-chief executive Tung Chee-hwa said that their names would inspire Hong Kong to be stable (An) and achieve great performance (Jia).
And when news of An An's lack of appetite was announced last week, Hong Kong's chief executive John Lee called Ocean Park to express concern.
Ocean Park has set up condolence books in the exhibition hall that An An used to live in.
Within an hour of the park announcing his death, hundreds of tributes appeared under the social media post.
"Thanks for all the happiness you have brought us over so many years," user "Tang Cc" wrote.
"I really can't accept you passing away but I also can't see you suffering. I will be missing you," user "Tuan Yuan Panda" said.
Hong Kong has another pair of pandas -- Ying Ying and Le Le -- who were gifted by Beijing in 2007.
They hit the headlines recently for beginning to show mating behaviour during the pandemic after almost a decade of disinterest.
Pandas are notoriously bad at reproducing, especially in captivity.
They are categorised as "vulnerable" by WWF with a record of 1,864 living in the wild.
A.Mahlangu--AMWN