Jia Jia is set to break the world record for being the oldest giant panda living in captivity. (Photo : REUTERS)
Jia Jia, whose name means “good,” will be celebrating her 37th birthday later this summer.
Residing in Hong Kong Ocean Park, she will be tying the record for the oldest panda in captivity--Du Du passed away in 1999 at the age of 37.
Jia Jia was born in China in 1978 and was given as a gift to Hong Kong in 1999, along with another panda to celebrate the second anniversary of independence from British rule.
According to Grant Abel, the park's director of animal care, it is rare for pandas to live at such an age.
"It is rare for pandas to live to this age class. And she is approaching to become the eldest panda to have lived under human care. It's probably equivalent to someone, a human person, who would be over a hundred years of age," Abel said.
Her vision and hearing are already severely impaired, but her caretakers say that her overall health is astonishingly good for her age.
Paolo Martelli, the park's chief veterinarian, recounted his first meeting with Jia Jia. According to him, his first thought upon meeting the so-called "old lady" was, "Oh my god, she's so old."
"But actually it's been ten years now, and she's had a few ups and downs," Martelli said. "She always manages bounce back and looks surprisingly good for [her] years."
The park staff are also mulling over the decision of submitting an application to Guinness World Record after her birthday.
The panda species is mostly endangered due to the destruction of their natural habitat by human activity through farming and construction. According to a 2014 survey conducted by the World Wildlife Fund, there are only 1,864 wild giant pandas in the world.
The problem is further exacerbated by the fact that pandas have an extremely short breeding season.
Female pandas remain fertile just about 24 to 36 hours every year, according to Panda International.
