Female giant panda Hua Ni gave birth to a female cub on June 3 local time at the Everland Resort in South Korea, the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda in Sichuan province announced on Wednesday.

A female cub weighing over 170 grams is born to giant panda Hua Ni on June 3 at the Everland Resort in South Korea. (Photo via China Daily)

Weighing over 170 grams, the cub is this year's first baby born abroad to pandas from the center.

"The cub cries loudly and is full of energy," said Wang Pingfeng, an expert from the center, who traveled to South Korea to assist with the delivery. "With prior maternal experience, Hua Ni quickly picked up the cub after the delivery and licked it, showing steady and adept maternal skills."

With the help of local keepers, Wang said he helped the cub nurse twice on the same day and confirmed that it had received breast milk.

As soon as Hua Ni began showing signs of labor, the center sent experts for on-site guidance, while also forming an online expert team to closely monitor her condition.

"Both Hua Ni and her cub are in good health," Wang said, adding that he would stay in South Korea for a period of time to care for the mother and cub, while the online expert team would continue to provide remote guidance and support.

Hua Ni and her mate, Yuan Xin, moved to South Korea in March 2016 under a 15-year Sino-Korean cooperation program on giant panda conservation and research. Over the past decade, the pair has naturally mated and given birth to four cubs. Their first cub, Fu Bao, born in July 2020, returned to the center's Wolong Shenshuping base in Sichuan in April 2024.