Giant panda may have faked pregnancy for more food
A giant panda allegedly faked her own pregnancy at Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Research Centre to get more food and better treatment.
Ai Hin is one sly panda.
The giant panda allegedly faked her own pregnancy at Chengdu Giant Panda Breeding Research Centre to get more food and better treatment.
The research center, located in China's Sichuan province, provides pregnant pandas with improved living conditions, including air-conditioning, constant care and, most importantly, more food.
"They also receive more buns, fruits and bamboo, so some clever pandas have used this to their advantage to improve their quality of life," Wu Kongju, a panda expert, told Xinhua news agency.
Ai Hin began showing signs of pregnancy last month. Giant pandas are an endangered species, so what turned out to be a phantom pregnancy was big news. So big, in fact, that the research center planned a live broadcast of Ai Hin giving birth. However, as the broadcast neared, six-year-old Ai Hin's behavior returned to normal.
According to Gulf News, phantom pregnancy is common in endangered species like giant pandas.
[Jezebel]