Popular panda on loan from China dies in Thai zoo
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
Chuang Chuang is seen eating bamboo at the Chiang Mai Zoo in northern Thailand in this photo taken on Sept 3, 2005.
PHOTO: AFP
BANGKOK (AP) - Zoo staff in northern Thailand have donned black and white clothing and observed a minute of silence to mourn the sudden death of their popular male giant panda, who was on long-term loan from China.
Officials said Chuang Chuang collapsed on Monday (Sept 16) in his enclosure at the Chiang Mai Zoo shortly after standing up following a meal of bamboo leaves.
Staff said on Tuesday they found no sign of illness or injury on the 19-year-old panda's body, and that he had recently passed a health check-up.
A zoo veterinarian said pandas have a life expectancy of 14 to 20 years.
Chuang Chuang and his female mate arrived in Chiang Mai in 2003 on a 10-year loan that was later extended for another 10 years.
