The Smithsonian National Zoo of Washington D.C. released a statement Wednesday informing the public that one of the two Giant Panda cubs born last Saturday has died.
The smaller of the two cubs, who weighed two ounces less than its larger twin, had been faltering. It wasn’t able to keep its food down and, thus, couldn’t keep on its weight.
Wild Pandas commonly birth twins and, in their natural habitat, usually nurture one cub and leave the other to die. The Zoo was switching the cubs on a four-hour schedule in hopes of giving both cubs the chance to bond with their mother, named Mei Xiang.
Mei Xiang rejected that plan and, since 2 p.m. Monday, she had been caring for only the larger cub, which seems to be doing just fine with her.
Like many other infant animals, Giant Panda cubs are extremely fragile during their first weeks of life.
The National Zoo also held a press conference at 4 p.m Wednesday.
In case you need cheering up, here’s some video footage of Pandas being goofballs.