2010-08-10 20:24

CHENGDU - A giant panda gave birth to a female cub at a breeding center in Southwest China's Sichuan province Monday -- the 10th panda birth at the center this year.

Ge Ge, the seven-year-old mother panda, gave birth to the cub at 11:23 pm at the Wolong Giant Panda Protection and Research Center.

The first-time mother struggled for six hours before giving birth to the cub, said Tang Chunxiang, an expert at the center.

"She did it without any assistance," he said.

The cub, weighing 159 grams, is healthy, Tang added.

The center, home to 60 percent of the world's in-captivity-bred pandas, is experiencing a panda "baby boom," with over 10 pregnant pandas expected to give birth over the next one or two months, he said.

Some 14 panda cubs have been born this year in Sichuan - 10 in Wolong and four others in the provincial capital, Chengdu.

About 1,600 giant pandas live in the wild in China, mostly in Sichuan province and the Northwestern provinces of Shaanxi and Gansu. Another 290 pandas are in captivity.