U.S.-born panda finds double happiness in China

A U.S.-born giant panda has given birth to twin cubs in a research center in southwest China, state media reported on Tuesday, its third pair of twins so far. Eight-year-old Huamei, whose name means "China America," gave birth to the first cub at Sichuan province's Wolong Nature Reserve early on Monday, Xinhua news agency said. The second, a male weighing 129.8 grams, came three hours later. The first cub's gender and weight have yet to be established, but both the cubs and mother were doing well, Xinhua quoted Li Desheng, vice-director of the reserve's research centre, as saying. The cubs are the third pair delivered by Huamei, who gave birth to twins in 2004 and 2005 since returning to the motherland in February 2004, the agency said. Huamei is the first giant panda to have been born and survived in the western hemisphere since 1990, Xinhua said.