Giant panda gives birth to twins at record 23 years old

A 23-year-old giant panda is equivalent in age to an 80-year-old human. -AFP filepic

BEIJING: Zookeepers never expected the 23-year-old giant panda to give birth again when she was moved to a nature reserve in southwest China to live out the rest of her days.

But Haizi started showing interest in courtship this spring, resulting in a blind date with a male panda suitor and -- four months later -- twin cubs that have made her the world’s oldest panda mom, China’s Giant Panda Conservation and Research Center announced Thursday.