Send out the birth announcements! This weekend, twelve-year-old panda Guo Guo gave birth to twins. (Editor's Note: see today's "featured video" for film of the birth) Guo Guo is one of the pandas forced by the May 7.9-magnitude earthquake to leave Wolong Nature Reserve, China's main panda breeding facility. Keepers are still trying to weigh the baby pandas, but so far they seem healthy.
The catastrophic earthquake that hit China's Sichuan province killed almost 70,000 people, with millions left homeless. In addition to the staggering human loss, the natural disaster had a dramatic impact on the endangered giant panda, China's beloved national symbol. There are fewer than 1,600 pandas in the wild. Another 180 are in captivity, and 64 of those pandas lived at the Wolong Nature Reserve, which was located near the epicenter of the quake. At least 80 percent of the panda's habitat was damaged or destroyed, and Wolong was so badly damaged that Guo Guo and her roommates had to be moved to temporary quarters in other parts of the country. Pandas have very slow breeding cycles, so every baby panda is a precious step toward saving the species from extinction. Last year just 34 pandas were born, and that was a record year! Guo Guo's twins are the first pandas to be born this year, anywhere in the world. They are a symbol of hope for everyone trying to recover in the devastated region, as well as for the recovery of their species. And the baby panda news keeps coming.
Officials at the National Zoo in Washington D.C. reported that panda Mei Xiang, already a mother, may be pregnant again. Although there's no EPT test for pandas, she is showing a hormone spike, caused by either a false pregnancy or the real deal. If she's carrying, Mei Xiang will give birth in mid- to late-July. Keep your fingers crossed for some American cousins for Guo Guo's twins. 
Feel inspired by this news? Or did you really love Jack Black in Kung Fu Panda, and want to help the pandas? You have a couple of ways to send them a baby gift. It's easy to adopt a panda through the World Wildlife Fund. They do great work, and one of those canvas bags with the panda logo is always a big hit at the food coop. I'm a recent convert to Conservation International and their Plan to Save the Pandas. Harrison Ford is on the board of directors (yes, that's how I make decisions, by copying celebrities, you know you do it, too.) Check out the information about how the quake affected the team working on conservation efforts in China, and learn more about organizations where you can donate money to help relief efforts. Soapbox side note: The thing I like about Conservation International, besides their broad but targeted conservation efforts, is that they partner with big money corporations like Walmart, McDonald's, DreamWorks and Starbucks, which is just smart. I wish more eco-organizations would get off their high horses. We live in a consumer society. Rather than try to stop people from buying stuff, give them better choices. While I don't eat at McDonald's, I respect the power of numbers they represent, in terms of both money and patrons. If they have the cash to support pandas, great! If they are willing to lend their huge communication channel to conservation causes, fantastic! Let's get in there and make sure those Happy Meals carry a useful message. Way more people go to McDonald's than get the Sierra Club newsletter. The goal is to get the news to as many people as possible, as often as possible. Eyes on the prize people: it's lucky for endangered species to have rich friends with big resources, especially when they need the help as much as the pandas, gorillas and tigers. End of soapbox. And in closing, yay for panda babies! Let's hope we hear more good news soon from panda nurseries around the globe.
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