Newborn panda ignored by mom dies at National Zoo

In this photo provided by the Smithsonian’s National Zoo, one of the giant panda cubs is examined by veterinarians after being born at Smithsonian’s National Zoo, August 22, 2015, in Washington.

Washington’s National Zoo announced on Friday the surviving giant panda cub born during the last weekend is a male cub.

The smaller of the twin cubs died Wednesday after animal keepers retrieved it from Mei Xiang in the morning.

The smaller of the cubs that died Wednesday was also a boy fathered by Tian Tian. (Pandas born in US zoos are denied birthright citizenship, a caveat that should meet with President Trump’s approval when it’s time to send Bao Bao home.) Until 2017, the pandas will have to deal with cramped quarters, especially Mei Xiang, who now enjoys twice as much indoor space as the others, said Brandie Smith, who oversees the pandas’ care.

Tian Tian is the father of Mei Xiang’s other cubs, daughter Bao Bao and son Tai Shan. In April, researchers in China sent a sample of frozen sperm from Hui Hui (h-WEI h-WEI), a panda deemed to be a good genetic match for Mei Xiang.

The zoo said the cub had “shown some signs” of regurgitating the liquids it was being fed, which could lead to the cub inhaling liquid into its lungs. They started giving the cub antibiotics to try to prevent illness. Zoo officials said at the time that the cubs were “vulnerable” given their size, but both appeared to be healthy. “We remain very optimistic”, said Dr. Neiffer. The National Zoo would care for the panda not with its mother.

The twins’ birth captured worldwide attention since giant pandas are among the world’s most endangered species.

Birth in captivity is rare for the black and white giant panda and fewer than 2,000 of the animals exist in the wild. But she wasn’t always interested in switching cubs, the zoo reported earlier this week. Tai Shan, 10, returned to China in 2010.

The National Zoo shared the sad news on social media.