01-08-2025
Gangtok's Himalayan Zoo Welcomes Twin Red Panda Cubs As Lucky Turns Mother
Two tiny red panda cubs recently made their debut at the Bulbulee Himalayan Zoological Park in Gangtok. With their large eyes and close-knit presence, the newborns add fresh hope for conservation amid declining wild populations. For now, they'll stay with their mother in a secure enclosure for approximately one year before being gradually introduced to the public, Says BJP Leader Dilip Ghosh on X.
Four tiny eyes,huddled together in silence.2 new guests have arrived at Gangtok's Bulbulee #HimalayanZoologicalPark .Red panda'Lucky'gave birth to two cubs. For now, they will remain with their mother in enclosure for a year, after which they will be introduced to the visitors. — Dilip Ghosh (Modi Ka Parivar) (@DilipGhoshBJP) August 1, 2025
The birth of Lucky's cubs is particularly significant because red pandas (Ailurus fulgens) continue to be under threat from habitat destruction, poaching, and illegal wildlife trade. According to ICUN, less than 10,000 individuals remain, with only 2,500–6,000 in India, scattered across high-altitude regions like Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Darjeeling, and Meghalaya.
Red pandas in India are primarily found in the Eastern Himalayas, specifically in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, and the Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of West Bengal. They inhabit high-altitude, temperate forests with bamboo undergrowth.
Red pandas rely on dense bamboo forests in the Eastern Himalayas, but rapid deforestation, habitat fragmentation from logging and road-building, and illegal poaching for fur and exotic pet trade have drastically reduced their numbers.
Despite international protection under CITES Appendix I and India's own Wildlife Protection Act, enforcement gaps persist. Community-based conservation efforts and captive-breeding programs—such as those at Darjeeling's Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park—are critical. The Park recently pioneered rewilding programs and genetic biobanking, and now hosts a "frozen zoo" to preserve endangered species' DNA, including that of the red panda.
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They are of two dfferent species:
Himalayan red panda (Ailurus fulgens fulgens), resides in the mountains of northern India, Tibet, Bhutan, and Nepal, and the Chinese red panda (A. fulgens styani), lives in China's Sichuan and Yunnan provinces.
Red pandas are mostly solitary animals, except during mating season or when a mother is raising display dense reddish‑brown fur on top, black underside, with a white face and tear‑like markings under the eyes. Their bushy tail has faint rings, Reports Britannica
