A pair of giant pandas in Malaysia finally stopped eating bamboo, hanging from trees and looking cute for long enough to get laid and do their species a huge solid.
Zoo officials told Asia One that the pandas, who have the super panda-ish names Liang Liang and Xing Xing, have actually set a world record for being the fastest pair to conceive a cub in captivity. Lian Liang gave birth on Tuesday. The pair arrived at the zoo in 2014.
This is actually a huge deal when it comes to pandas, because they're notorious for not having sex. Often it takes years before panda couples in captivity finally get around to it. Usually zoos end up going with artificial insemination.
Many a word has been written on the disappointing and decidedly not-horny (but still adorable) animals. Pandas in Atlanta won't have sex. Pandas in Washington, D.C. won't have sex. Pandas in England won't have sex. You get it.
According to a CNN story on the topic, "It's been long known that panda females experience sexual excitement only before ovulation, in a narrow window of time that occurs once a year. The window is open only 24 to 72 hours, sometime between February and May."
Sorry, panda bros.
So yes, it's a big deal that a couple of pandas in Malaysia met, decided to get it on, then followed through on getting it on. Feel free to celebrate by remembering why we want this endangered species to survive:
