Meng Xiang and Meng Yuan, two giant panda twins born in Germany two years ago, have been weaned, the Berlin Zoo said on November 11, Wednesday. The Berlin Zoo is currently discussing the timing of the twins' return to China.

A recent photo of giant panda twins. The photo is provided by China News and shot by the Berlin Zoo.

Jiao Qing and Meng Meng, two giant pandas from Sichuan, China, arrived in Germany in June 2017, and they moved into the panda house specially built for them at the Berlin Zoo. Meng Meng gave birth to male twins, Meng Xiang and Meng Yuan, on August 31, 2019. Meng Xiang and Meng Yuan celebrated their second birthday in Berlin on August 31 this year, and have grown from less than 200 grams when they were born to around 65 kilograms.

Now, the Berlin Zoo has arranged for Meng Meng to live alone rather than live together with the twins. According to the Zoo, panda mothers usually separate from their cubs within two to four years. However, Meng Xiang's recent loss of appetite has attracted the attention of the experts in the Zoo. They initially thought his lack of appetite might have been caused by taking medication after he developed seizures earlier this year. But after the communication between Chinese and German experts, breastfeeding was blamed for the loss of appetite. Barbara Cohen, an expert in animal medicine at the Free University of Berlin, said the protein could cause disturbances in the gastrointestinal tract, and the gut flora is better adapted to these nutrients when the diet is purely plant-based, "so it is natural to separate mother and baby pandas to help them wean."

The Director of the Berlin Zoo, Kneerim, said the latest developments show that Meng Xiang and Meng Yuan will be able to return to China next year. Although no specific date has been set for the twins' return to China, the Berlin Zoo is already in discussions with Chinese panda experts to prepare for that day, he said.